Missouri Homeschool Daily Log sure knows what she is talking about.  She has some excellent advice on co-op participation.  I highlighted some of my favorite tips in blue.

In the beginning I was all for homeschool co-ops and still am now.  Over the years I have gathered experience about what works and what doesn’t in a co-op and for my schedule.  As far as your schedule is concerned I would caution you to not jump in with both feet and offer to teach more than one class.  As a matter of fact I would suggest that you attend the first year/semester to get a feel for it before volunteering.  I can not stress this enough especially if you are a new home schooling parent.  Remember you’ll be preparing all your children's material and then the material for your co-op class once a week or so.  The first year of home schooling is like riding a bike with training wheels.   One class can dominate your home school week placing a lot of strain on you.  

Teaching others is a wonderful gift for all involved if the class is well behaved. I enjoyed teaching the classes tremendously and in the process discovered that I have natural born teaching tendencies.  In a group of people, however, discipline is always an issue.  When you look for a co-op make sure that they have good policies in place.  A co-op with good policies will run smoothly and be a joy to all.  What are some good policies?  Policies that I would look for in a co-op would be a clear statement of what their goal is as a group, fair discipline issues established for students and teachers alike, a statement of faith if you are looking for one to be in agreement with your faith, and attendance requirements.  Even loose establishments that just meet for play time need to have some simple policies to prevent hurt feelings and misunderstandings.

If you are homeschooling for religious reasons one of the biggest assumptions that I made was that everyone was homeschooling for the same reasons.  Do not assume that everyone feels the same way as you.  Be a careful guardian, fully ascertaining the atmosphere of your co-op.  Attending a few times before deciding to join may be wise and most co-ops will have no problem with you doing so.

Co-op groups can certainly be a blessing to all involved, yet we need to remember that as home schoolers we are not without faults.  This article is intended to be wise advice and not at all a discouragement from finding a co-op.  When I started I wasn’t ready for issues that cropped up and it side-lined me for a while.  Now that the dust has cleared I know what to expect and also more of what I’m looking for when it comes to a homeschool co-op.

A homeschool group in Georgia asked for my help because they had been getting letters from the IRS about back taxes.

We are in dire need of your help.  Our homeschool group has received notices from the IRS saying that we need to contact them regarding our overdue taxes. Our group was incorporated (in 2003) but we have not filed any paper work (tax returns or corporate updates) since.  Please advise, as soon as possible.
TD, Georgia

The treasurer e-mailed me because she had been getting letters from the IRS stating that the homeschool group was late in filing their corporate income tax return. The group ignored these letters for a few years until they found my website.  It seems that the original founder had mistakenly thought that the group owed corporate income tax on their surplus. She had filed a Form 1120 (Corporate Income Tax Return ) with the IRS and paid them $71 several years ago. The IRS expected to see corporate tax returns every year thereafter and was mailing the letters when the returns were not filed. Fortunately, the group had filed for nonprofit incorporation status with the State of Georgia several years before.  This was solid documentation that the group was a nonprofit organization (even they did not have 501 tax exempt status with the IRS).  I called the IRS on behalf of the group and the IRS employee told me to mail a cover letter and a copy of the nonprofit incorporation certificate from the State of Georgia. I did so and when I called the IRS two weeks later, the IRS employee told me that the situation was taken care of, the case was closed and the group wouldn't be getting any more letters!  (We didn't ask for a refund of the $71 previously paid, though!)

One leader in New England runs a small homeschool support group with big plans to host a homeschool conference.

Our small support group has been up and running for over 14 years. The past few we have been looking into running a homeschool conference and have decided to go ahead. But we are starting from scratch. We have never had Non Profit status or even a separate checking account. I’m looking to verify that we should take the steps for non profit first, then start our account.
Any thoughts?
Mary B

This week's theme is Labor Day and a celebration of the different types of labor we  perform as homeschoolers.

 

I really enjoyed all these posts and want to remind everyone that your labors are not in vain.  Our fellow homeschool blogger, Marsha Drews of DrewsFamilyTX blog lost her dear son, Christian, last week in a horrible accident.  Hugs your kids a little closer this week and be grateful that you have the chance to labor for them and love them a little longer.

General Education

Keeping a preschooler busy from
A Familiar Path: What's a Boy to Do?

Lapbooks, reading lists, printables and organization from
The Happy Housewife: Tackle School Planning

Computer-based homeschool curriculum worked for this family
Parenting Squad: Computer based curriculum

Tiffany struggles with unschooling or more structured curriculum
Natural Family Living Blog: The Great Homeschool Decision

Homeschooling a 12th grader looks a lot more like real life than school.
Barbara Frank: Homeschooling a 12th Grader....Again

A photo peek inside a homeschool in its first week
Learning at His Feet: Beware: Learning is Happening Here!

A book review on preparing for college from
Homeschoolbuzz.com Reviews:  College-Prep Homeschooling

Kris sets up a rice center for her kids at
Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers : Rice Center

Miss Amanda invites us to take a look at her homeschool college classes
The Daily Planet:Homeschool Memoirs: Homeschool Agendas

A homeschool curriculum review contest over at
Successful Homeschooling: Tell me about your favorite curriculum and win free books!

The Arts

A classic art medium-play dough! from
HowToMe:  How To Make Our Favorite Play Dough

Create a family flag for your homeschool
Happy to be at Home: : Homeschool Flag 

A book review from
Adventures in Daily Living on Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense by David Guterson

A book review from
Melissa’s Idea Garden on Life Prep for Homeschooled Teenagers by Barbara Frank

Siouxsie's son tackles an essay in an unusual manner.
Siouxsie's Musings: Partly Sunny with a Chance of School Starting

A writing lesson using well-constructed persuasive arguments
Janice Campbell: Taking Time for Things That Matter: Persuasive Writing: Teach It With Models

How is poetry created? Through the senses
Works in Progress:  Writing Through The Senses

Punctuation is like breathing
The Expanding Life:  In Which an Ordinary Woman Punctuates Her Life

If you fall asleep while teaching, you may wake up on a different planet from Life Nurturing Education:  Sleep Teaching Doesn't Work

Math

Make your own play cash register
Play Activities: DIY Toy Money

Try your fractions on this proposed tax bill
The Informed Parent: Push to change IRS code for homeschoolers continues

Christine makes math a fun labor!
The Thinking Mother: Younger Son Loves Code Breakers

Who needs an expensive curriculum when there's curiosity and interest? from
Roots, Shoots & Fruits:  This Is Our Math Curriculum

Denise may not care for the title, but she liked the math book in her review on
Let's Play Math!:  Review: Math Doesn't Suck

Science

Spider hunting video from
Kid Lit Kit: Nic Bishop and Spiders

Shelley turns a mouse in the house into a unit study!
Homemade Homeschoolers: They DO Build a Better Mousetrap!

"It's Labor Day Weekend. There's not a school supply in sight. And I saw 4 shooting stars tonight."
The Life Without School Blog: 4 Shooting Stars and No School Supplies

Lance and his kids have been growing a banana plant and look at what they've learned!
Home Educate in the Sunshine State:  Going Bananas

 

Health

Two news articles on absenteeism and vaccinations are cause for concern from
Yankee CowGirl:  It's That Time of Year Again...

Keep your sense of humor about everything. Laughter helps to stay sane from
Home Spun Juggling:  Still Fighting the School Blues

Dana presents a thought provoking discussion on vaccinations on
Principled Discovery: Homeschoolers and vaccinations

Homemaking

Nominate your favorite homeschool blogger  on
Alasandra's Homeschool Blog Awards: The Homeschool Blog Awards

A family's recent quest to bring order to the chaotic books overtaking their home on
Choosy Homeschooler Blog: How We're Conquerering Chaos in Our Home Library

Henry writes about getting back into the grove at
Why Homeschool: Reentry has been a bit bumpy

Labors of Love

A homeschool mom parents teenagers from
The Eclectic Telegraph: A Dancer With Many Hats in a Thankless and Undervalued Job

Progress made on summer learning goals
No fighting, no biting!: The Start of School Approaches

Living life abundantly from
Lessons from Loon Loop: The Sacred and the Mundane

Why pick a career when you can do it all as a homeschool mom?
Homeschool Nations - Arizona: The Many Hats of a Homeschool Mom

This mom is a laborer for her family
Notes From A Homeschooling Mom: The Labors of Homeschool

Starting homeschooling with a life long, eternal  perspective
The Life Schoolers: Officially Homeschooling

Christy is thankful for the opportunity -the gift- to teach her children. 
Mercy Every Morning:  God's Grace in Our Labor of Love

Please take a moment to post a link to the carnival on your blog— help spread the word about homeschooling and the carnival, and to send some traffic to all these terrific bloggers who took the time to share their lives with us.

Don’t forget to send in your post for next week’s carnival, as well, hosted by Why Homeschool Just click on over to the easy submission form at Blog Carnival anytime before Monday at 6pm Pacific time.

Carol Topp

Thanks to www.designedtoat.com Free Original Clipart at Designed to a T  

 

I volunteered to host the Carnival of Homeschooling next week. on September 2, 2008  The theme is

LABOR DAY: LABORS WE PERFORM AS HOMESCHOOLERS

I just learned  that my new book Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn Out now has a Search Inside feature at Amazon.  It is so cool!

I received this question from a homeschool group treasurer about filing for nonprofit incorporation:

I am the treasurer of a large-ish homeschool group. Almost 40 families. I bought your book for our group. I read through it and passed it on to the president of our board. I am supposed to be filling out an application for non-profit corporation status through the Texas Sec. of State.

Because this is public record, we do not want our home addresses on the application. So we got a post office box. That's fine for the officers' addresses, but it is asking for a physical address for the registered office. We don't have an office, per se.

I forget, why do we want to do this? What is the benefit of non-profit status?
Thank you and we have found your book very helpful.
~C

• limited liability for your leaders
• continued existence
• avoid taxation on any surplus
• enter into leases or employment contracts

A homeschool leader in KY recently e-mailed me about her group's plan to buy a building.

Carol,

 

I attended your workshop at the Cincy convention and found it very useful. Do you know of any home school group that has their own building? That is our next step and I need help in knowing how to get started. We are already tax exempt and have about 200 students. Our web site is www.christianconsortium.org , located in Louisville.

 

Thank you for any help you can give!

 

Beverly C

The Christian Educational Consortium

Carol Topp, CPA

Does your homeschool sports group need insurance?  A homeschool leader in Indiana shares information on her insurance company.

Dear Carol,

I heard you speak at the Cincinnati HS Convention and it was VERY helpful.  At the end, I mentioned that we had sports insurance and you mentioned that you wanted that info.  So, in keeping with my promise, I am responding to that request now.

We use USSFA which was established many years ago, as I understand it, to provide insurance for homeschool sports.  There are only a few states in which they cannot insure, but you can contact Lew Owens for more information if needed.

email: ussfaoffice@comcast.net
USSFA Office
4150 Kildeer Drive, Ste 2-A
Indianapolis, IN 46237
Phome:  317-357-8908
Fax: 317-357-8791

We have used this for several years (our sports program is over 11 years old) and have been very happy with the program USSFA provides.  With this insurance, we are able to show the schools and other rental locations that we have liability insurance and then we have the added benefit that our player/coach coverage picks up their existing medical coverage ends.

If you call Lew, please be sure to mention that you heard about him from me (Shawna Howell). Effective 3/15/08, I became the director the SEI Panthers Basketball (SE Indiana) program and he will know of me through that affiliation.

My prayer is that we can continue to network with one another for the benefit of the homeschool community across the country.

Thank you for all that you do to help our community and particularly for sharing your wisdom with us at the convention.  I was truly blessed.

Blessings,
Shawna Howell

HomeschoolCPA recently received this question via e-mail:

Hi Carol,

I am the leader of a 15 years old home education support group in Ohio. We are considered a ministry of our church and our under their tax-exempt status, however we currently have by-laws and our own checking account, we approve membership, and collect fees. We offer a lot of choices/activities for our families including Friday classes, field trips, concert & theater opportunities, history fair, science fair, geography bee, mom's nights, Stanford Achievement Tests, etc.
 
My questions/concerns:  Since we are under our church's tax-exempt status, is it a conflict to have our own bylaws?  Do we jeopardize our tax-exempt status or the church's by operating as a separate entity?  Over the years, we have accumulated a fairly large balance in the checking account.  Is there a maximum we should have?  It's our desire to work hand in hand with the church and the protection of the church and it's authority has always been a blessing to the group.

I appreciate your help,
Sharon W

I really enjoyed talking to JoJo Tabares on her internet radio' show Grace Talk Soup this past week.  We talked about

• the pros and cons of homeschool co-ops,
• how to get started,
• the mistakes leaders make and
• how to avoid burn out.

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