More Homes United

We have just passed the halfway point in the school year.  It's mind-boggling how fast time flies these days!  

Our great experiment, the middle school co-op Homes United, has been a fantastic experience.  The "honeymoon period" lasted about six glorious weeks.  We enjoyed it while it maintained it's perfect polish, but we recognize that real life is not perfect and it's good for our kids (and us as parents/teachers) to experience bumps and bruises and changes of plans.  Kids (and parents) sometimes have conflicts.  People get sick.  There are misunderstandings and miscommunications.   It's all a part of the learning process.

All that being said, overall, we have had such a great semester!  Aubree loves co-op.  Occasionally, class days have been cancelled due to sickness, and she's always so disappointed.  

Making a scarecrow

These kids have had some remarkable experiences and opportunities.  For example, at one of the homes where they have co-op, the owner's dog had a litter of 10 Labradoodle puppies in December.  It was love at first sight for all the co-op kids (and their siblings and parents).  

 

One of the puppies, the runt of the litter they named "Frosty," was so sick his survival status was hour-to-hour.  Frosty became the co-op's unofficial mascot.  They made up a song about him, they prayed for him, they begged for regular updates, they assisted in "mothering" him.  Frosty, though much smaller than his brothers and sisters, is a fighter. 

The co-op kids have had numerous opportunities to provide service and get involved in the community.  In October, they organized a food drive for our local Food Bank.  They took shifts standing in front of Grocery Outlet inviting shoppers to contribute.  

It was impressive to watch them step out of their comfort zones and speak to strangers.  It was even better to watch their reactions when shoppers were generous with their donations.  They were so excited and grateful, and I could tell it was making an impression on them.

When we went to deliver the donations, we had an opportunity to tour the food bank.  Again, what a great experience for these kids! 

During this tour, we learned that, due to the loss of one of their regular sponsors, the food bank anticipated being short about 75 turkeys for Thanksgiving.  We looked at each other and thought, "surely, we can figure out a way to meet that need!"  We quickly organized a "turkey drive," and with tremendous support from our community, we did it!

This was such a meaningful experience, particularly as we collected the turkeys on the evening of November 8 - which ended up being a very contentious, emotional election night.  When my Facebook feed filled with despairing posts, I felt hope because I'd just spent hours interacting with people who were eager and willing to be generous and kind.

Another service project in which the co-op kids participated was Operation Christmas Shoebox.  The shoe box Aubree packed ended up in "a distant land," which is supposedly code for "someplace so politically unstable we can't list it's name publicly."

We've had a number of really fun field trips. Early in the year, they visited the home of a local author and publisher.  He talked to them about writing books and listened to poems the kids had written.  Aubree especially enjoyed it because she loves to write and plans to be an author when she grows up.

This gentleman also had an old violin that he let Aubree use, and she provided the lunchtime entertainment.

When their cooking class was learning about Italian food, they took a field trip to a local wood-fire pizza restaurant.  They got a behind-the-scenes tour of how it all works.  Getting to sample the pizzas was an added bonus!

Another cooking field trip took them to an Asian market, where they learned all kinds of fascinating facts about fish and food.

The kids took three engineering classes at a local studio.  They learned about different types of bridges, then broke into groups and decided which type of bridge they wanted to build.  They had to take into consideration all types of things in deciding what would make the "best" bridge, such as materials, cost, and structural integrity.  The end results were impressive!

One of Aubree's favorite classes is Art History.  Their projects are astounding.  I only have pictures of a couple of their projects, but I really should hunt down pictures of all of them (I'm pretty sure Aubree has taken pictures), because they're worth remembering.

African Mask

Chinese calligraphy

In December, we had a progressive dinner, so all the parents and siblings could get a peak at where and what the students had been doing.  It was so fun!  Most of these kids come from large families, so there were tons of people!

At the second home, the kids had prepared a short presentation.  First, they shared a little about all the different art projects they'd completed.  Then they gave a demonstration of an improv game they often play in their speech/debate class.  In this game, they line up and the first person makes a statement.  Each person in turn, adds their argument to why that statement is correct.  This night, the first person opened with, "Our middle school co-op is the best."  Hearing this group of kids talk about why they love their co-op was really special.  Plus, they are remarkably articulate!

I loved listening to them speak.  Well, at least I did when I wasn't distracted with trying to keep Nellie out of the bathroom...

In my Literature class, we've been learning about literary analysis.  For the last month, I've been having the students take turns teaching.  They each chose a picture book, read it to the class, then led the class in a discussion of literary elements such as: setting, character, plot, conflict, climax, and resolution.  It's been a rockin' experience!  These kids are NOT afraid to share their opinions and it's amazing to see them get so invested.  

In the end, what I love best about our co-op is the fact that our kids are thriving.  These 6th and 7th graders are happy, confident, enthusiastic, and intelligent.  We are so blessed!

After their co-op Christmas gift exchange