The weekly Carnival of Homeschooling is hosted by Tiffany  at Life on the Road.

Is your homeschool group looking to raise some money in 2008?

Meet With an Accountant
I strongly recommend that you speak with a local accountant and explain to him or her what you are planning to do. And I stress the verb tense here. Consult with the accountant before you attempt a fund raiser.

Track Down Your Local Homeschool Association
I would reach out to the leadership of the local homeschool network in your area to ask their advice and learn from their experience. Perhaps they have an established fund raising event themselves, and you could participate in it.

Ask Detailed Questions of Any Fund raising Company You’re Thinking of Using
If you decide to go the route of a product sales fund raiser and you are considering using a professional supplier, I would recommend consulting with them before entering into an official agreement.

Find Out Exactly What Being a Non-Profit Really Means
I would suggest doing a little reading on the exact nature of what a non-profit organization truly is. It is very easy to say that you would like to become a non-profit, but it is an entirely more difficult matter to actually do it.

Visit the Homeschool CPA Online
I would read and become very familiar with the blog called Homeschool CPA. The author of this site is Carol Topp, and she is a certified CPA, who has become an authority in the field of homeschool fund raising. She answers direct questions online, so you can email her with your specific situation, if you like. After reading through her entire site, I highly recommend it.

Keep Thorough Records
When it comes to raising money, I strongly urge you to keep excellent records of everything you spend and everything you earn. This will make it much easier if you ever do have to go back and justify your actions.  Read the entire post here

Dana Hanley of Principled Discovery blog is now hosting a weekly on-line radio program called Homeschool Talk. 

• My new book Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out and why I wrote the book
• The pros and cons of being in a homeschool co-op.
• Managing money in a homeschool group including checking accounts, reports to the board, and security
• What does nonprofit status mean and how do you get it?
• How can a group raise money?  Are there any pitfalls to watch put for?

Here's a press release I wrote to announce my new book Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out.


Homeschool parents are frequently criticized for denying their children out of important socialization opportunities. The complaint is that homeschool children are isolated and lack proper socialization, but in reality that’s not a problem, according to Carol Topp, homeschooling mother. 

Homeschooling has become so popular that homeschoolers are no longer isolated. Almost everyone knows another homeschooling family in their town. Studies show that homeschooled children “are involved in more social activities, whether by design or being with the parent in various situations, than the average middle school-aged child."1  That finding is accurate according to Mrs. Topp’s experience. “My daughters are involved in several activities including a weekly homeschool co-op that offers an excellent opportunities for them to make friends and interact with other children and adults.”

Mrs Topp and her daughters have been involved in a homeschool co-op for five years. A homeschool co-op is a gathering of homeschool families that share teaching responsibilities. Homeschool co-ops come in all sizes, but are typically five to fifty families that meet once week for academic and extra curricular classes.  Mrs. Topp’s co-op is typical with 40 families that meet for three hours of classes at a local church on Fridays. Her daughters have taken a variety of classes taught by volunteer parents such as Spanish, art, biology dissection, art history, drama, career exploration and personal finance.

“I think homeschool co-ops are a wonderful opportunity for homeschooled children. I encourage parents to form a co-op in their city if one doesn’t already exist.”  Mrs Topp, a CPA with an accounting business that serves homeschool groups, has written a book called Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out. (Aventine Press, paperback/$12.50).
The advantages of homeschool cop-ops include group learning, learning from other adults, encouragement to continue homeschooling, friendship and fun for the students. Co-ops provide opportunities for group learning that is difficult to create in a home setting such as a drama production or choir. Co-ops can also teach subjects that are beyond the experience of a single parent.  “I never took a foreign language in high school, so I needed help when my daughters wanted to learn Spanish. Fortunately a mother at our homeschool co-op was a Spanish major in college and agreed to teach a high school Spanish class,“ Mrs Topp explains. She goes on to say that she had no desire to dissect frogs on her kitchen table, but another homeschool mother with a nursing background was happy to teach biology dissection.

Mrs Topp’s book Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out is available at Amazon.com or the book's website www.HomeschoolCo-ops.com.


1 "Socialization Practices of Christian Home School Educators in the State of Virginia," a study of ten Virginia home school families, performed by Dr. Kathie Carwile, appeared in the Home School Researcher, Vol. 7, No. 1, December 1991.

I have booked two homeschool talk shows to discuss my new book

Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out

I'm looking forward to JoJo Tabares' show Grace Talk Soup on Thursday July 24 11:00 AM EST.  We'll talk about the pros and cons of homeschool co-ops.

and Homeschool Talk, a new on-line radio program on blog talk radio from Principled Discovery's Dana Hanley on Monday July 14 at 2:00 pm EST. 

Mark the dates, tune in and learn something new!

Carol

An new Carvival of Homeschooling is now up and running at About.com:Homeschooling.   The theme is the 4th of July and Homeschool CPA has an entry titled: Can I Homeschool Other Children?

Another Homeschool Carnival is up and running at  Melissa's Idea Garden.  It has a lovely Mother's Day theme.  Enjoy reading other blogs from homeschoolers.

I try to participate in a Homeschool carnival at least once a month (they come out weekly), but missed several months during tax season.  It's fun to be "back in the saddle" again.

I am so pleased and excited to announce that my book

Homeschool Co-ops will help homeschool parents, leaders and co-op members run successful, happy homeschool organizations. Included are stories from co-op leaders on how they started their groups, what worked and what didn’t, and what they wouldn’t do again. The book also shares how to deal with conflict, why a board and bylaws are needed, and helpful tips to avoid frustration and burn out.

Homeschool Co-ops has advice from the author, homeschooling mother Carol Topp, CPA, and from other homeschool leaders on:

• Pros and cons of starting a homeschool co-op.
• Types of co-ops
• Having a focus and a mission
• Running a planning meeting
• Gathering interest
• Getting help
• Setting policies
• Managing the money
• Dealing with volunteers
• Handling conflict
• Ideas for classes.
• Avoiding burnout

Visit the book’s website www.HomescoolCo-ops.com to read a sample chapter, view the table of contents and see what others say about the book.

Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out
Aventine Press, 2008, paperback /$12.50 list price
ISBN:1-59330-533-8

I hope you order a copy, enjoy it, write a review and tell a friend!

Carol

Homeschooling author Ruth Beechick writes a short column for The Old Schoolhouse's e-newsletter The Homeschool Minute.  Ruth's topic in March 2008 was forming a small homeschool co-op.

It's Just Common Sense
Ruth Beechick, Curriculum Specialist

Here's one work idea that can help to spread and strengthen the homeschool movement. You could offer tutoring and homeschooling help to a family less experienced or less confident than you are. One great system would be to take in a child who can study alongside one of your children. Teach them together on arithmetic or whatever the mother most wants help with. You can have the child one or two days a week (or more) and require homework assignments between times. You could require the mother to be there if she needs to build confidence in homeschooling, or maybe not, if you are relieving a busy mother from one of her homeschool problems. Flex this any way you wish.

A second idea is to plan a co-op on a topic you feel confident with. But avoid the burdening overreach that so many co-ops have done. Do not make it into practically a school by teaching one day a week and then giving assignments that eat up the rest of the children's week, and then giving grades that pulls responsibility away from the parents. Grades are not necessary, anyway, unless certain students need transcripts. Let parents handle that their preferred way. Your co-op could be one meeting only or could meet for a full semester, or any length in between. Try to include all your children, or perhaps pay a mother and older child to care for toddlers during the class.

Don't try to be what you believe is co-opish or schoolish or any particular form. Just plan what fits what you want to teach, and charge families what will pay for your time. You can make it both a job and a ministry that does not take you away from your own children.

--Ruth

I'll be presenting two of my favorite workshops at the Midwest Homeschool Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio on March 28 and 29, 2008

I'm glad that I'm getting to present each workshop twice.  That gives attendees more opportunities to visit some of the other wonderful workshops.  Frankly I think my friends Brennan and MaryJo Dean the convention promoters and organizers go waaayyy overboard on the number of speakers!  There are too many good choices! 

HomeschoolCPA received the nicest e-mail the other day.

Dear Carol-
I am looking into directing our well-established homeschool group next year and, thanks to you, I don't have to reinvent the wheel.  You've got so many helps and hints ready for me to use!  THANK YOU for all your hard work and your support of homeschool organizations. I have added my name to your e-newsletter and I am eagerly seeking your new book at its release!
God bless you,
Amy D
Columbus, Ohio