A day in the life - homeschool co-op edition

I've done many 'days in the life' posts over the years, but never one that chronicles our days spent at our homeschooling co-op.  We use the curriculum and attend the classes through Classical Conversations program (click HERE to read more about CC).  I teach our kids using the classical method, which you can read more about here if you're interested. Dorothy Sayers' The Lost Tools of Learning is a great read as well.)

We love our CC co-op.  It's challenging and fun for the kids (and the moms and dads too). One of the things that won us over when we first started researching and learning about CC was their motto:

"To know God and make Him known." 

CC says: "This permeates through all that we do and teach within this program.  We examine the how and the why of why things the way they are.  Classical Conversations teaches that all subjects are not only interconnected but that God is the author and creator of each subject.  Each subject informs us more about the true nature of God, and a better understanding of God informs us about each subject that is taught."

Years ago, when we began teaching our children at home, Jon and I agreed that our first goal in educating our children would be to teach them to know God and in turn, make Him known.  We believe that everything else will fall into place with their academics, and eventually, their careers. CC is a great fit for our family.

So!  Here we go!  Right now, both our children are in the Grammar stage at CC, so a lot of what they are learning is the same.  I delve in deeper at home with Havalah, since she's older than Henry.  This fall, she will move up to the Dialectic stage (click here to read more), and he'll follow suit in a year or two.

So, what happens at our co-op?  Well, in a nutshell, all the subjects for the week are introduced to the kids (except for math, we do that entirely on our own at home) and then the parent spends the rest of the week teaching what was just introduced.

Here we go!  

6:45 up and ready for coffee - amiright? :)

7:00
Time to wake the kids.  On our school days at home, they sleep until about 7:30, so we can start school at 9:00 sharp.  

Breakfast (more coffee for me) and tea for them.

8:00
The kids have been playing Ultimate Frisbee in their PE class, so Henry uses every opportunity to practice practice practice his throws.

8:30 in the car and on our way.

(At 9:00 we have an opening ceremony where we have announcements, flag salutes and one family speaks for 3-4 minutes about themselves.  I forgot to take a picture of this time, so instead we are jumping ahead to 9:30. )

9:30
Havah and Henry are in the same class this year, so that's nice for me.  Right now their "tutor" which is what the teachers are called, is introducing the subjects for the week.  They are doing hand motions for the timeline that we add on to each week.  By the end of the year they will have memorized 161 events of human history.

Other subjects introduced for the week:
History
Latin
Math (concepts)
English Grammar
Geography
Science

10:30 Science Lesson

11:00 Class presentations

Each week there is a different topic for which the kids will research and prepare a short presentation.  It needs only last 3 to 4 minutes.  The kids of this age group have gotten so comfortable with presenting that their tutor has to set a timer to keep them within the time limit.  This particular week was a fun one because the assignment was a "Who Am I?"  Havalah led the class in hangman having them guess several different types of birds.

Other examples of class presentations this year have been:
one of the seven wonders of the ancient world
famous person or event
a living organism, plant or animal that lives in the ocean
missionary or church history

When we first started CC several years ago and I explained about class presentations to our kids they both went as white as a sheet.  Now, it's absolutely no big deal.  I'm thankful for this and opportunity for practicing public speaking on a weekly basis.

Review

They are playing review games, working on the previous 6 weeks of New Grammar, which includes Geography, History, Timeline, Latin, Math, English, and Science.

11:30 Fine Art
This week they are studying about Albrecht Bruer, a German painter, print maker and theorist from the German Renaissance.  He was probably most well known for his intricate wood-cut prints, which is what the kids are trying to replicate today.

Bilbo Baggin's Hobbit Hole :-)

12:00 Lunch!
On this particular day, we were the first class to arrive, so they kids had their choice of tables.  There are usually about 75-85 kids and moms (and maybe a dad or two) in the lunch room, so this is a rare quiet moment.

1:00 Essentials

We've moved on to our Essentials class.  Here the Grammar and Writing assignments for the week are both introduced.

2:00 still in Essentials

We've moved onto the Writing portion of the afternoon.  Havalah's name was drawn from the hat, so she is one of three kids that gets to read last week's assignment aloud.  It was on ancient Roman Government.

This assignment for this week is to make a fused outline from two sources (on Roman Engineering) and then write a short paper.  

3:30 

We're out of CC and on our way to look at some doll houses that I found on Craigslist.  I'm on a mission to find one that Havalah and I can re-do together (and Henry wants to make the furniture)!  Havah already has her own charming little dollhouse, but we thought it would be a fun project, nonetheless.  Unfortunately, these two houses are waaay out of budget ($300 and $400) but it was fun to look and get ideas.

4:00 

Havalah's art teacher is having her work displayed at a local gallery, so we are on our way to take a look.

4:45 - Home at last!  Bella is happy to see us and ready to run and play (and bark!) outside.

So, this is our co-op day in a nutshell.  :)  Thanks for coming along with us!