- Don't have a Charlotte Mason co-op near you,
think about starting one.
(upbeat music)
Welcome to the Simply Charlotte Mason podcast.
I'm Sonya Shafer.
Starting your own Charlotte Mason co-op
might sound a bit intimidating, but it doesn't have to be.
Let's talk about that today.
And here to join me is a long time
Charlotte Mason co-op director and starter, Laura Pitney.
Laura, how long have you been directing
a Charlotte Mason co-op?
- Well, officially, probably about five years
with the one local to my church and to our family.
We have been parts or I have been part of a moms group
that has been meeting monthly for about 10 years.
And so, both of those have definitely fed into me
and our family and I have been super blessed
to be part of it.
- So how did you start the co-op then?
Are those two connected somehow?
- I feel like looking back they were,
but at the time we had our monthly moms meeting,
where we would sometimes go
through one of Charlotte's six volumes,
or sometimes we'd go through an inspirational
homeschooling type book or topic or video series.
So just things that were pouring into our homeschool lives.
So, because that group was up and running and established,
as I grew as a mom and as a teacher
and some of my friends grew in that same way,
it just kind of naturally led into,
hey, why don't we get together
and teach some subjects together, our children together?
And so, looking back,
I definitely would say they were related,
that has looked different, and some of the families
that were originally part of it
have moved or switched directions.
And so, it's different families now
than it was even five years ago or 10 years ago.
So, I think that the more you talk
and you even socialize with your friends at church
or whatever other, I guess, social outlets you have,
just talking about it kind of feeds into,
hey, let's get together.
And that's, to me, naturally how mine started.
- So if someone wants to start their own co-op,
their own Charlotte Mason co-op,
what are some of the things they need to be thinking about?
- Yeah, I would decide.
I would say, decide what kind of co-op you want to be,
whether it's just maybe an academic co-op
for certain Charlotte Mason subjects,
or if you want to just do a nature day,
or just want to do the monthly book club,
just decide what your vision is for the group.
Like, then you can be able to tell people,
hey, come let's meet for coffee once a month
and talk about nature study
or how to do a picture study or...
So, once you know the type of group you want to have,
then you can help get word of mouth out
or start mentioning it to people.
- So then people know what--
- What they're getting into. (laughing)
- Yeah, what they're committing to.
Exactly.
I suppose you might also need to decide
what ages you're going to accommodate,
or do you just wait and see who comes?
- Yeah, I mean, my first priority
has always been my own children.
So, if I am the one that wants to do the co-op
and direct the co-op and organize the co-op,
I feel like it was natural for me to want it to fit
where the ages of my kids were.
And so that's kind of my starting point was,
how will this benefit myself or my own family?
Just because I knew that,
in order for it to be a compliment to our homeschool,
that's what it would need to be versus a burden
when I was trying to plan around
all the other million options you might have.
So, that was where I started was,
ages that were appropriate for my own family,
but then as interest showed
and ages kind of naturally spread out,
we just kind of talk through logistics of that.
So, but I started with,
okay, I have a second grader and a fifth grader
and a ninth grader, so that's what I'm going to plan around.
- That makes sense.
Then, also I would think location
would play into this as well.
That's another decision I'm sure you had to make.
- Yeah, yeah.
And there's been times where we've met at a local park,
like monthly and that worked well,
and that was a good option
because it didn't cost us anything.
Over the years,
we have been blessed to be able to meet at my church
and they have a fellowship hall that we can gather in
and do the different lessons and activities.
So, I would definitely just start brainstorming
maybe what options you do have that are probably free first,
and that genuinely is probably what everybody wants.
But then, sometimes if you really,
really want to see the group happen,
you might have to all pitch in
to do like a rental fee or something,
but I would just brainstorm
to see what options you already have in your life
and in situations,
or a friend may know somebody that has a room you can use,
or you can even open up your home,
if that's something that you feel like to do or want to do.
- Good.
Then you've been talking about,
if you are going to direct this,
what if somebody wants to start this co-op
but they don't feel like they have leadership skills,
they don't necessarily want to be the one in charge.
Is that a possibility?
- For sure, and that definitely happens.
I would suggest maybe forming a leadership team.
You may be the visionary,
where you have the desire and the dream,
and this is really what you want for your children,
but you don't necessarily want to do the administrative
or plan out logistics or organize it.
So, just start praying and asking and searching
and figure out, if we could get four or five other moms
that want to come alongside you,
and just form that leadership team
to where you can delegate and just, here's my vision.
Okay, y'all do it.
That's okay to do.
It just depends on your personality
and what you have time for, the commitment that you have,
but that leadership team
I think would really give life to your group.
You can't do it all.
You can try, and you may last for awhile.
I know that was my situation,
and I just think there's wisdom
with having other brains to collaborate,
to figure out how to make it a successful group.
- Well, especially, I would think if you want to grow,
you have to be able to scale.
And as you said, you can do only so much,
especially when you're homeschooling your own kids too,
or you don't want to neglect your own children
for the co-op's sake.
It needs to compliment.
So, with that in mind also,
another big decision then, once you have your leadership
and your other parents involved is figuring out classes.
- Yeah, yeah.
So I think there's two ways to look at this,
and it's just going to have to be something that you decide
in the situation.
And I don't think
you can necessarily plan one way or the other,
but you can have teachers or moms
that are part of your group that have talents
that they want to share with the group,
and you can base your classes
based on what they're willing to teach and share,
utilize their skills and the things they're specialized in.
But if you're going to be a Charlotte Mason focused group,
there's certain classes that should be part of that co-op.
And so, I know that, I call them our CM 101 classes,
like, we're going to do art study,
we're going to do composer study,
we're going to have a time for recitation.
There's certain classes that I want part of our group.
And then alongside of that, if I have moms that say,
hey, I'm really good at teaching theater,
I'd love to do a theater class,
or, I have a mom who's really good at science
and she wants to do a couple experiments
just to give them some hands on experiences.
So, it's kind of hard to plan one way and then end up with,
oh, wait, I have all these great moms
that could do these certain subjects,
but then you could plan around the teachers
and miss out on the Charlotte Mason subjects.
So that's absolutely no help to anybody
(both laughing)
because it's just fitting the pieces together.
But as the director or the planner,
I would definitely encourage that person to say,
I want this to be a Charlotte Mason-based co-op.
These are the classes
I for sure want to have part of the group,
and then as moms present themselves and say,
hey, I'm willing to do this,
or, have you ever thought about teaching this class?
Then those can be compliments to those cores,
the core CM classes that you want part of your co-op.
So, it's kind of a tricky scenario,
but I just think having flexibility, and having that person
that can see how to organize it all together
would be beneficial,
and it's okay to let them do it if that's not you.
- Well, it sounds like,
it's very much like we do with our own home schedule.
If you have certain things that are set,
but then you sprinkle in other things that might change
every term.
- Correct, that's a great illustration for that.
And if you're already homeschooling then you can see
that and how that natural progression happens.
- Yeah, yeah.
Now, along with the classes then,
there's possibly, probably some materials
that you'll want to use.
So how do you handle that?
What kind of decisions need to be made about materials?
- Well, materials to me,
I don't go too much outside
of Simply Charlotte Mason's resources.
That's just been a go-to for me over the years.
I've adapted them to fit a co-op setting,
or there may be situations
where we only need to buy one of the resources
and then we'll just share in different ways,
like maybe home extensions or things they can do at home.
So, resources for me,
I've just always used the SCM resources,
and they've been a really great fit for that group setting,
but also keeping it real intimate and simple.
There's been times where I've had moms that say,
hey, what about this?
Or, what do you think about this resource?
And I always am glad
to take in the suggestions and the ideas,
because there's great things out there
that I just may not know about.
So, I always want to give that attitude that,
I don't have it.
I don't know it all and I'm not my way or no way.
There's so many good ideas.
So, I always screen it though,
and then usually there's a follow-up conversation about,
yes, this will work great,
or no, I don't think this is good for a group setting or--
- Or for a Charlotte Mason approach.
- Yes, correct, correct.
Because you have--
- Or for the values of your group.
- Correct.
So, there's a lot to consider with that,
and especially if you have new families
that want to learn about Charlotte Mason,
but yet still have maybe traditional mindsets
about certain things.
So, I don't want to deter them and just say, no, that's wrong,
because that's not their intent.
But there's a learning curve there,
and as the director and the leader, I want to encourage them
to jump into the Charlotte Mason method and philosophy
without being a dictator with it, if that makes sense.
So there's a responsibility
that I have to encourage them and love them,
and point them in the right direction.
By keeping good Charlotte Mason resources
helps everybody just be on the same page.
- One thing I'm very excited about
as you've been leading your CM co-op
and we've been discussing all about that,
is how you've helped us develop
resources for groups specifically, and those are brand new.
Right now we have group lesson plans, group courses.
Like you said, you would take SCM resources
and make them work in a group
while we're coming out with lesson plans
that do that already for the groups.
- Yes, ma'am, it's very exciting.
- And then talk a little bit about what's available
for those who want to start a Charlotte Mason co-op.
- Sure.
So, one of the big dreams that I know SCM has had is,
how can we help build communities
that really love Charlotte Mason methods and philosophy?
So, out of that love,
these resources and things have developed.
And so, one of the options is, we have some video courses,
and there's some that are just basic courses.
This is what to ask, this is what to look for,
here's some encouragement, and those,
hopefully will be available for whoever wants them.
If you really want to dive in and dig deeper,
we have some paid courses that you can purchase
that'll just really walk you through that,
the in-depth process of all the things we just mentioned,
location and teachers and policies and fees,
and all those things
that just may seem really overwhelming starting out.
Those specific courses
are really created for the purpose of giving you the tools
and the encouragement you would need
to start a group from scratch.
But also, there's ladies out there and teachers out there
that have been doing co-ops for a long time,
and they just may want to help and just say, you know what?
This is streamlined,
this is something I can just either switch over
to and do this with the SCM resources or, you know what?
That's a great idea.
I want to implement that.
Or, this is adapted for a group setting,
this would be perfect for our next term.
So, some of it can definitely be a la carte
to help compliment maybe a group that's already established,
but there's also a lot of great resources
to really help you build up and start a CM community.
- It's always great to hear how a Charlotte Mason co-op
can just grow into a beautiful community
to encourage the home education,
as well as the group education.
And I'm sure that all of your comments,
all of your wisdom and insight
has helped a lot of people know that,
it's not that hard to get a co-op started.
Yes it takes some work, I'm sure,
- Yeah, it does.
But it doesn't have to be intimidating.
You can do it.
Is there anything
you want to just encourage people with as we wrap up?
- Yeah.
The biggest thing I would say about starting a co-op
is remember your goal and why you're doing it.
A lot of times that gets missed in the logistics of it,
but ultimately we want to invest
in the hearts of our children.
Our hearts need to be invested in,
so having that community
just really is something to remember why you're doing it.
We're obviously there to enrich the mind, right?
We want to learn, we want to be challenged, we want to grow,
and then, keeping in mind that we are all learning together.
I mean, we don't ever stop learning,
and for our children to see us as learners
and us to see them grow
in the way they think and interpret the world.
I mean, it's just a beautiful thing.
So that would be my encouragement,
is just to remember the why behind your...
The why you're doing it.
Just because that really keeps our hearts motivated
to invest and enrich and to learn together.
- Thanks.
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