Actually, I also owe two more payments of $37 as well. Today was signup day for this semester of homeschool coop. You pay it over three installments. This covers each girls classes (we meet every Friday) and a yearbook for each. This also covers all their class supplies as well. Classes we are taking this semester include band, a sewing class-how to make new clothes out of old ripped up jeans (rather frugal I thought), earth science, scrapbooking, baton, gymnastics, watercolors, painting, PE, ballroom dancing, and a science lab. One of the girls wanted to take cake decorating as well but the class enrollment for it was already full.

I was pleased to see that they are offering a JR version of Dave Ramseys class for those students 12 and over. Last semester they offered a class in the workings of banking and stocks and bonds. I heard several parents say their kids had to explain it to them. As part of that class, the kids picked stocks and had to follow them to see the ups and downs. Some made money and some lost money.

Our coop has over 300 kids in it, pre K through 12th grade. Frugality is a strong theme there. We even have a free swap and shop where people can bring clothes, shoes, books, toys for someone else and take what they need instead. You see a lot of creative ideas used by the teachers in their lesson plans and crafts and experiments.

I also like the fact they teach a lot of "survival skills" classes, such as sewing, cooking, money management, powderpuff mechanics-common sense classes. One of the public districts near here has dropped their band, choir and home-ec classes in an effort to conserve funding. Yet they still have their sports teams!! I think that is sad.