FAQs
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What is a cooperative Community? |
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We are a group of homeschool families that come together in cooperation to provide educational and social activities for our children. We are an entirely volunteer ran group that depends on the group for the flow NKHC is a cooperative organization.
Therefore, it will be integral to the success of the program for all individual family members to participate in order to meet our goals. The classes offered will be those chosen by parents, who will act as teachers. Parents who are not filling the role of teachers will act as teachers’ aids, lunch and recess monitors, clean-up crews, and more. Parents also do all the planning, newsletters, communication, and creation of all co-op activities, field trips, parties meetings, and more. All Board members and Leadership Team members are parents. We need our parents to fill many roles to make our co-op successful.
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Are you secular? |
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As a nonsectarian group, we may not be entirely secular, by everyone's standards, but we do not adhere any specific belief system either. We acknowledge that our members come from diverse backgrounds and may hold their own biases. To respect everyone’s individual backgrounds and beliefs, we aim to maintain a neutral stance in our classrooms. It's worth noting that a significant portion, if not the majority, of our members align with secular homeschooling in the traditional sense. |
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Do you require a statement of faith? |
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No, we do not. We are a non-sectarian group, and members of all faiths and beliefs are welcome. The only adherence we require is our CARE policy We Speak with CARE • We learn with CARE • We play with CARE
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How do we join? |
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Click here to go to our request membership page. Membership approval is based on availability and class sizes. There is a three step process. 1. When you request to join the Community Outreach Coordinator will email you a few questions. This is also a good time to ask any questions that you have as well. Once you have emailed us back your answers then the board will review and decide if we have space or not. You will receive an email telling you what to do next. 2. Families that have completed the application paperwork will be invited for a tour or a meet and greet. 3. The admin team and you are ready to get you enrolled a board member will reach out to you and help you get started please contact us anytime with any questions |
Q: |
Can I schedule a tour? |
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Our group is very small and intimate. Because of that we only offer tours to families who have approval first. Please reach out to northkitsaphomeschoolcommunity@gmail.com with any questions. If you are ready to join our community then you can fill out the application at the top right hand side of the main page. |
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Can I drop my child off? Do I (the parent) have to stay the whole time? |
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No, we do not allow drop-offs. We are a parent-run organization and can only flourish with active weekly parent participation from all families. You are required to be on campus at all times, and volunteer jobs are required to make the day run smoothly. The responsible adult must stay the whole time. Due to the nature of a co-op, our parents work most of the day. We try to give each family one free block so parents can build relationships, but we can not guarantee this. |
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Do we need to attend the whole day? Every week? |
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Classes are best when there is participation, however, we realize that there are emergencies and unforseeable circumstances in those cases we just request that you ensure that any volunteer jobs you sign up for are fulfilled before you leave. If you only plan to participate alternating weeks or half the day on a regular basis then this would not be the co-op for you. Planned absences should be rare, and we schedule break weeks to help families minimize their time away from co-op. Please see our handbook for specific guidelines to handle planned and unforseen absences. |
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Do you do field trips? |
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To enhance the learning experience, we go on several field trips each year. We have a fabulous social committee that plans great field trips and parties, Parents are responsible for providing transportation and supervision. |
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What ages do you serve? |
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We offer classes and groups for all school-age children from Pre-K and up. In September of the academic year, every family must have a child who is 5 years old or older. Groups are based on the child's age on SEPTEMBER 1st: Butterflies: ages 3-4 (Preschool) Orcas: ages 5-7 (Kinder - Second grade) Woodpeckers: ages 8-9 (Third and Fourth Grades) Bears: ages 10-11 (Fifth and Sixth grade) Eagles ages 12+ (7th+ grades Middle and High School) |
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Do you have a preschool? |
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While our program is primarily a K-12 program if there are enough preschoolers or toddlers we will create a class.If there are enough 3 or 4 year olds we can set up preschool program for thoses families that also have older children (at least kindergarten enrolled). If there are not enough students to hold a class we will decide if it's worth having a class or if we should have parents keep their preschoolers with them during the day. |
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How long is each term? |
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Classes run on a school year schedule (September-June) with a break every 5-6 weeks. There is a long winter break December-January. Exact dates are planned and posted on the main page. We have approximately 3 terms which are 10-12 weeks long. Current members will still gather and get together during summer months. |
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What classes do you offer? |
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We offer a wide variety of new and exciting classes each term. Please visit our classes and registration page for more information on our current classes. Some of our favorite past classes have been Lego Robotics, Eating Your Way across the USA, Computer Programming, Hogwarts School of Wizardy, Forensic Science, and Emergency Preparedness. We offer a mix of semester and year-long classes. |
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What is the cost? |
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*FAMILY FEES ARE NON-REFUNDABLE AND DO NOT INCLUDE CLASSROOM FEES WHICH ARE CALCULATED AT EACH SESSION* Family Fees: $200/family Classroom fees: Dependent on the class. We aim for fewer than $ 5 per day of class but there are many free and less expensive options as well. Class fees are set by our teachers and the amount they need for materials and supplies. |
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Do you require fundraising? |
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Everyone is required to participate in fundraisers, as the ever-changing economy is making it difficult for us to keep our family registration low enough to afford the overhead costs. |
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When do you meet? |
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We meet once a week, on Tuesdays, from 9:45AM-2:15PM in Bremerton, WA. We also offer an optional 0-hour block for our Thrive program (8:30-9:30 am). Families with younger students can have unstructured play and help set up for co-op while the older students have class. We also often gather during the week for optional playdates, field trips, clubs, and other gatherings.
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When is class registration? |
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Open registration dates for new member families are announced approximately 6 weeks prior to the start of the term. In-house/returning member families are given priority status and are eligible for early registration, once returning families are registered then we will see where and if there is space before we open up membership to new members |
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What is my job as a parent? |
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Every parent teaches and/or TAs. Everyone chooses a committee that they would like to work with (each committee meets during the co-op day to be accessible to everyone)
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