Homeschool: co-op classes par excellence!

It's no secret we move often ... and have been involved in many different homeschool groups, co-ops, and activities.  Some have been great ... and we still are in contact with the parents that ran those groups.  Then, there were other programs that make my kids cringe/cry/generally shudder at the horror of attending those again.  There were also one or two that were just plain mediocre -- which is almost the worst kind!

Today, we have hit the big time -- a long-running co-op that not only has great classes but is amazingly welcoming to all the new families as well as the old.  This is an all-Catholic homeschool co-op that uses a Baptist Church free of charge for our all-day co-op.  The wonderful folks at the Baptist Church allow us "free run" of their education building ... with enough space to have:  infants, 1-2 yos, 3 yos, 4 yos, K, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th-12th (4 or 5 classes to choose from) -- all in separate rooms.  We have a total of 30 families with 101 kids!  Yep, it's very, very Catholic.

Mine had a blast today:

• Lego Maniac's classes -- chess/logic; art/drawing (I help in this one) and liturgical calendar
• String Bean's classes ---- dance; drama; American History (I help in this one)
• BamBam's classes ------ pe/sign language (to get them ready to sit); phonics (I help in this one); math games; liturgical calendar (on a lower level than LM's class).  As you can see, the courses are a good mix of "real learning" and real learning ....

There are many other choices but the point of this post is the prayers of thanksgiving I offered up that this is such a wonderful spot for us to have landed ... and we're not planning on moving any time soon (please, GOD!).  Some of the families we "knew" thru my bro/sil who lived here 20+ years ago; some of the families we "knew" thru older siblings that go to dh's high school; some of these folks we actually KNOW from our VBS this summer ... but those with whom we have no connection, were just as welcoming as all those we "knew"!

My kids can't wait to go back next week.  String Bean's comment summed it up for all -- "I can't wait till next Tuesday ... that means co-op is the next day!"  We finished off the day with a Art Appreciation ... LegoManiac is enrolled in Seton Home Study this year (getting him ready for dh's high school in 4 years) and they have a GREAT art appreciation program ... we thought the whole family could benefit from the study, so we've made Wednesday evenings "art history night" with the Seton Art History program ... and it is GOOD!  The kiddoes than watched Pickwick Papers with dh while I computered ...

What kind of co-op or homeschool group are you involved with?  How does it work?  Are you active?