SS #03: The Wonder-Based Classical Co-op

Pam is not only my co-host in this one, but she’s also the guest this time around. That’s because I really wanted to hear more about her classical co-op and all the changes they have made over the years and how those have come about. Since I don’t have a co-op myself, what I really wanted to do was listen and learn — and Pam was full of great lessons, that’s for sure! Get ready to be inspired to continue to learn and grow and allow that process to bear fruit in other endeavors, such as co-ops.

A conversation on how scholé can move our co-ops (and other educational endeavors) from less wonder to more wonder.

Thank you to our sponsor:

The Official Short & Sweet Classical Homeschooling Guide

This episode is sponsored by Expanding Wisdom. Have you heard about classical homeschooling and want to learn more? Or have you been homeschooling in a classical way but want to go deeper without feeling overwhelmed? What if all the questions we ask — or should be asking — about classical homeschooling could be summed up in five simple questions? And what if we knew exactly where to go to find those answers? Expanding Wisdom, a blog that helps homeschool moms with this very thing, has put together a free guide just for you. The Official Short & Sweet Guide to Classical Homeschooling also includes a Classical Curriculum year at a glance chart for 1st – 12th grades. Click here to download your free guide.

 

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Show Notes:

 

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6 Comments

  1. Thank you for another wonderful podcast. I am a Charlotte Mason homeschooler primarily, but I find the classical approach fits in so easily and in such a complimentary way. I love the podcast because I do place a high value on professional development for the homeschooling parent. I love both of Pam’s other podcasts as well. A question for you, I have an android phone and do not use iTunes at all. Rather I use the Podcast Addict app on my phone to listen to all of my podcasts and try to faithfully rate podcasts through that format. Is that as beneficial to the podcast or is it truly an iEverything world we live in! Keep up the excellent work, I love all of the parts of the podcast.

  2. It helps, yes! I say this especially because I have talked with so many android users lately who all say Podcast Addict is their app of choice. So having good ratings will help. But I think it helps *less* maybe? I’m not sure. Where reviews matter a whole lot is on apps that — like iTunes — actually make recommendations based upon ratings. So, higher ratings mean that the show appears higher on a list, if that makes sense. But still — all reviews help. 🙂 So thank you! 🙂

    And we are so glad you love the podcast! ♥

  3. Pam, your co-op and book club sound so cool. I don’t even like co-ops…or…you know…being around people (ha! INTJ), but you make me want to start a book club. I think I live roughly in your part of the country, but probably too far to actually join your group.

    The question/answer about starting the day makes me wonder if *everyone* but us starts school during breakfast. My kids wander out to the kitchen straight from bed, fix themselves something to eat, and then go back to their rooms to get ready. I wonder sometimes if we should try doing it the other way around — getting ready first and then sitting down to eat together, and starting morning time then. But messing with our “first thing in the morning routine” could be dangerous. I’ve been thinking about it, though, especially with the #uppingmybreakfastgame posts I’ve been seeing. We generally start our day by singing a hymn. Once I start playing the piano, they know it’s time to get out there with their morning time folders.

  4. I loved this podcast! Thank you, ladies, for recording it and sharing it with all of us! Pam, your co-op is just what I was imagining with my community. We have several families joining us from different homeschooling paths, but all of us walking towards approaching homeschooling with Scholé in mind. We have decided on a Charlotte Mason inspired classical co-op. Pam, we are going to go ahead and use the Story of the World sequence as you have done. Is there any way you would be willing to share some of your read-aloud choices with me as we are planning our next school year using SOTW vol. 1? I know that is a lot to ask, but I thought I’d see if you wouldn’t mind passing along your group’s wisdom in this area. Thanks!

  6. Thanks for this! Classical Conversations is huge in our town, with 6 campuses now, so that the majority of homeschoolers I know are in it, and there’s a lot of pressure to join. I knew after looking into it that it wasn’t for us, partially for cost but also for methods, as I love Charlotte Mason as well. In college, I was a tutor with a small local classical co-op which grew into a classical academy where I taught for 10 years, so I know there are other ways to do it than the CC way, but I was feeling very isolated in that decision. And The Tempest! I would skip it in favor of so many superior Shakespeare plays. It’s his only original plot, and as my Shakespeare professor explained it, he just wrote it as a vehicle for his new special effects at the Globe, much like the big blockbusters that are short on plot and long on fiery explosions.

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