Famous Artists (Study an artist each week and do a project that incorporates that artist’s style.)

Painting (Practice painting using different types of paint–watercolors, oils, acrylics, watercolor pens, etc. Spend a few weeks on each topic)

Portrait Drawing (Lean how to draw faces. Learn about proportions, eyes, shading, ears, hair, etc. Practice drawing using your own face, other people, or pictures from magazines–take a magazine picture, cut it in half, and draw the missing half, etc.)

Art History (Learn about art from different eras and create projects from each era)

Calligraphy (Have students learn proper technique, learn letters and numbers, etc.)

Music (Learn songs, easy instruments, and music theory)

Choir (Learn songs and voice exercises and perform at the end of co-op)

Pioneer Days (Read a pioneer book Farmer Boy in class and do a craft that goes with the chapters you’re reading.)

Lego Challenge (Have a different challenge each week to build such as a house, animal, dinosaur, tallest tower, a cartoon character, a picture, etc. and then have the kids show and explain their creation; or have each project be a challenge such as a Lego rubber band car that goes farthest, a tool you can actually use, a team building the best castle, etc.)

Pottery & Sculpture (Use clay to make different types of pottery and sculpture using slab method, pinching, coiling, and general forming of figures or animals. If possible bring in a wheel or several and try your hand at spinning a pot or vase.)

Countries & Cultures (Invite immigrants from other countries to come share about their country and their own story using speaking, pictures, objects, maps, music, food, etc. You can also talk with people who live in other countries over video chat.)

Travel Around the World (Study a different country each week using maps, videos, art projects, current events, food, etc.)

China (Watch videos on Chinese history, travel, and culture. Create a dragon craft, try calligraphy, create paper lanterns, have a Chinese New Year celebration, learn Chinese words, make a kite, etc.)

Cool Chemistry (Do projects each week involving chemical reactions: blow up a balloon using yeast, explode a bottle of pop with Mentos, make a volcano, make rock candy, make homemade ice cream, test acids and bases using liquids from around the house, etc.)

Kid Congress (Create your own country, make a constitution, create a flag and passports, have elections, make a map, decide on laws, decide on immigration, figure out how to encourage businesses to move to your country, decide on taxes, decide on spending, etc.)

Gameschooling (Play board games, math games, group games, history games, card games, etc.)

PE (Tag games, dodge ball games, ball games, playground games, sporting games, etc.)

Olympics (Racing games, relay games, sports simplified like instead of tennis us the rackets but a big bouncy ball, games using the 5 colored Olympic rings, etc.)

Math Mania (Math games, math competitions, math songs, math story books–example One Grain of Rice–math projects, etc.)

Engineer It (Teams create challenges such as tallest tower made of cards or cups, popsicle stick bridge that can hold the most books, tin foil boat that can hold the most pennies, catapult that can launch farthest, strongest bridge made of toothpicks and jelly beans, etc.)

Imagineering (This is a curriculum through Disney that teaches kids about all kinds of cool engineering projects inside the Disney theme parks. Kids watch the video and then you lead them through a hands on engineering challenge that goes with the theme of the day)

Drama (produce a play and perform it at the end of co-op)

Improv Drama (find improv games online. Practice games each week and perform some at the end of co-op)

Reader’s Theater (Pick a play like “Horton Hatches the Egg” or an episode from Adventures in Odyssey. Practice it and perform it at the end of co-op)

Speech (We love IEW’s Speech Boot Camp, or make your own curriculum)

Career Days (Invite people from different careers to come and talk about what they do such as Veterinarians, Plumbers, Architects, Entrepreneurs, Real Estate Agents, Boat Captains…you name it! If possible, go to see them at their place of work. On days when you can’t find a special speaker, watch videos on different professions and talk about them. Practice interviewing, take a career personality test to see what they might like, write a resume or business plan.)

Sell It! (Study entrepreneurship, advertising, and marketing. Pick a real product in the marketplace and have the kids in teams come up with advertising and marketing for it–a TV commercial they will act out, a radio commercial, a Facebook ad–use computer or just drawings to represent it–Instagram add, create a theme for the campaign, target audience, etc. Watch commercials and look at ads and critique them. Figure out what works and what doesn’t. Have individuals or teams come up with a product to sell at the end of co-op for showcase. They can create the product, figure out the pricing, and come up with a display to sell it, then do it!)

Government & Economics (The Uncle Eric book Penny Candy is a great book for this age on economics.)

Magic School Bus Science (Watch an episode of the Magic School Bus, then do an experiment that goes with the topic)

Let’s Get Outside (Learn how to fish, make a camp fire, cook over a fire, how to shoot a bow, gun safety, take a field trip to a shooting range, learn how to fillet a fish, how to make a fly or lure, etc.)

Medieval History (Read about medieval times in Europe and Japan. Study the way castles were set up and build your own, watch videos or go tour a castle. Design your own knights armor or dress, read about King Arthur, make medieval foods and eat them, in teams write a short story about a knight, princess, or peasant and share them, etc.)

Etiquette and Manners (Learn about how to treat others, polite phone protocol, how to shake hands and talk to adults, how to write thank you notes, etc.)

Mock Election/Government (Learn about voting, running for office, running campaigns, and government in action. Put on your own mock election)

Oceanography (Watch videos on the ocean, the deepest parts of the ocean, corral reefs, littering, etc.; cook and eat salmon, fish, scallops, etc.; visit an ocean if you are near by, create a diorama of a tide pool, fill in and color maps of the jet stream and ocean currents, dissect a starfish, visit an aquarium, etc.)

Wild Kratts (Watch an episode of Wild Kratts and do crafts, activities, and games that go with it. For example, watch the episode on earth worms. Make an earth worm habitat to take home or make one in the classroom and put the worms in it. Touch them and talk about how they are made. Make an earthworm picture using noodles. You can get a subscription to PBS Kids for $5 a month and cancel at any time to access all the Wild Kratts episodes.)

Ponds (Bring in pond water and look at it under a microscope to see all the little critters that live in the water, study and draw the life cycle of a frog, go frog catching at a pond, eat frog legs, go fishing, study or dissect different insects, learn about unusual bugs like the giant water bug, create a pond biome diorama, make a picture directory of birds or animals you can spot near ponds, study animal tracks you might see in the mud near ponds, etc.)

Astronomy (Study planets, comets, stars, dark matter, asteroids, etc.; watch videos, using different sized balls to represent the planets, go outside and walk out the scaled distance between them, placing the balls as you go, make a mobile of the planets, create your own alien planet and draw it, talk about the incredible intricacies of what makes the earth the perfect planet for life compared to other planets, try astronaut food packs, visit a planetarium, etc.)

Apologetics (Learn the history and investigation of the Christian faith and how it stands up to scrutiny)

Logic (Study the rules of logic and how they apply to the world around you. We like the book The Fallacy Detective)

Crossfit/Dance/Gymnastics (Find a studio or gym in your area and see if they will hold a daytime homeschool class for you. Often times they are happy to offer discounted classes during the day, since they aren’t making any money otherwise during that time. You provide the kids and they’ll provide the class!)

Sewing (Have families bring in their sewing machines and do a sewing project or 2–aprons, pillow cases, etc. You can also do hand sewing projects so that some kids can be on the machines while others are hand sewing or cutting, ironing their cloth, etc.)

Cross Stitch (Learn cross stitch. Pick a pattern and make a pillow for your bed or for your mom!)

Baking (Make cakes, pies, muffins, tarts, etc. Learn the effect of using certain ingredients like butter vs. oil, baking powder vs. baking soda, regular flour vs. cake flour, etc.)

Cake Decorating (Learn how to ice a cake, how to use different icing tips, how to make and form shapes out of fondant, etc.)

Cheese Making (Spend several sessions learning how to make quick cheeses such as ricotta, mozzarella, and mascarpone. Watch videos on how aged cheese forms, visit a shop that sells many types of cheeses and try samples, visit a cheese maker.)

Bread Making (Learn how to make quick breads and yeast breads. Try different types of breads. Make a recipe using some of the bread you made. Visit a bakery or donut shop for a behind-the-scenes tour.)

American History (Take field trips to nearby historic sites such as prehistoric, Native American , Early American Life, Revolutionary War, Civil War, Pioneer Life, and Civil Rights. Learn the history of your city or town in relation to your studies; lots of curriculum and videos available on this subject)

Liberty’s Kids (This award winning, fascinating animated series made by PBS and starring the voices of many famous actors is an incredible way to learn about the early history of America during the Revolutionary War time period. DVDs are available online or with a subscription to the Kid Genius channel on Amazon for $4 per month)

History of Fashion ( Study great influencers and designers throughout the time period, Create outfits for women from the 1800’s to the present, have a fashion show at the end to display your designs)

World History (Study fascinating civilizations around the world. Watch videos and Create art and projects reflecting parts of each interesting history)

Health & Nutrition (Learn about basic anatomy, good health and lifelong habits, and healthy eating. Get in the kitchen and try out some healthy recipes!)

Card Games (Learn Rummy, Bridge, Hand and Foot, Mow, Hearts, and all kinds of card games)

What Happened in My State? (Learn the history of your state. Take field trips to state historic sites, buildings, and monuments. Learn about famous people from your state. Make a state flag or other crafts or art associated with your state. Visit state parks or geological sites.)