How to set up a project-based homeschool club

Introduction

Many homeschooling families would love to create a fun, self-directed, project-based, homeschool community, but getting there can be a challenge. In this article and the following lesson plans, we will share a step-by-step guide that anyone can follow regardless of experience or prior knowledge. 

Homeschool clubs serve as vibrant hubs where families come together to share the educational journey, offering not only academic support but also a sense of belonging. Facilitating such a club can be a fulfilling endeavour, providing opportunities for shared responsibilities, diverse skill sets, and the chance to give back to the homeschooling community.

By joining forces with other parents, the homeschooling burden becomes lighter, and each parent can contribute their unique skills to the collective educational experience. For those new to homeschooling, a club can serve as a support network and a source of guidance. Furthermore, educators and facilitators have the option to charge for classes and become a Quest4Learning affiliate to create a rewarding income stream.

Setting up Your Homeschooling Club

1. Find a Venue

Choosing the right venue has a big impact in creating an engaging environment. Consider spaces with tables, WiFi, and enough room for different workstations. Suitable venues include homes, community centres, libraries, hotel meeting rooms, co-working spaces, schools (in the evenings and weekends), church halls, resorts, bars, restaurants, cafes, or online video conferencing.

2. Choose Meeting Times

Establish a meeting schedule that accommodates the time commitments and availability of the participating families. Consider starting with one session a week and once that session is successful you can add additional sessions. 

3. Set Up a Dedicated Facebook or WhatsApp Group

Create a digital space for communication and coordination among club members.

4. Equipment/Resources Needed

Each family will need a Quest4Learning ‘Essentials’ or ‘All Access’ account, and each learner will need a computer or tablet to get the most out of the sessions. To facilitate the sessions, it would be ideal to have TV or large monitor for presentations, a whiteboard, and a basic arts and crafts box full of supplies. If you want to focus on music, consider additional equipment like a keyboard, electric drum kit, speakers, microphone, ukulele, headphones etc.

How to Structure a Session

1. Start small

If you are wanting to create a homeschool club as a business you can skip this step, but if your goal is to to get together with some other homeschooling families informally, consider starting small. The simplest version of a homeschooling club is where all the families meet at a venue and co-work. Each family takes responsibility for their own children's activities. They can do what they would do at home but in a venue with other families that are also homeschooling. This opens oppertunities for some social interactioin, a change of environment, and a sense of belonging, but their is no pressure on the organiser to provide activities or materials.

2. Add some collaboration

If you have a Whatsapp or Facebook group, parents can share what they are planning on doing with their children in advance. This gives other families the oppertunity say that they would also like to do that activity which allows for some organic collaboration, without the pressure on the organiser to facilitate and provide equipment.

3. Start with Circle Time

To create a stronger sense of community, starting each session with circle time is highly recommended. All of our lesson plans have ideas for games, questions, and activities that build teamwork, empathy, and a sense of belonging. This is also a good time to establish session rules, including signals for silence (e.g. shaking a tambourine), expected noise levels for different tasks (e.g. silence, whispering, partner talking voice, or group talking voice), and any other rules to ensure a supportive and kind environment.

4. Self-Directed Learning Time

After circle time, the main part of your homeschooling club will be self-directed learning time. The easiest way to manage this is to start small and allow each family to take responsibility for supporting their own children with any quests and activities that they want to do. If parents have communicated what they plan to do in advance, some families might decide to join up and learn together with the parents facilitating.

You might want to have a more structured approach though. In which case, you can follow our 'Homeschool Club lesson plans'. This requires you to organise different workstations. One for computer work, one for arts and crafts, and one for music . Each workstation should have a dedicated adult / parent facilitating, plus any other parents that want to get involved. Each facilitator should choose two or three relevant quests for their workstation in advance of every session. Additional workstations can be added if there are parents that can contribute more skills, and you can add workstations for board games, workbooks, and learning apps if you wish.

Depending on your educational values, you might want to give learners complete freedom to choose which work stations they want to work on, or alternatively, you can put the learners in groups and designate each group to a work station for 30 minutes and then rotate. 

5. Exhibit and Feedback

Encourage learners to work towards an exhibition of their projects. This could be a presentation at the end of every session, or at the end of the week, or a larger event every couple of months that friends and families can attend. Be aware that some learners might find presenting their work intimidating and the facilitators should offer to present the work on their behalf, with the option of keeping the learner’s name anonymous if requested. Facilitators can gather positive feedback from the rest of the group. We recommend keeping peer feedback strictly positive, and then ask the learner questions regarding what they have learned, how it could be improved, and what they like about their work. 

6. Finishing a Session

Conclude each session with circle time, allowing learners to reflect on achievements, share insights, and express their thoughts about future learning.

Final thoughts

Facilitating a homeschooling club using Quest4Learning offers a unique opportunity to create a self-directed, collaborative and enriching educational experience. By following these steps, you can build a vibrant community that not only supports academic growth but also fosters a love for learning that lasts a lifetime.