HV Thirsty Minds Cooperative

A picture says a thousand words. Our cooperative not only provides opportunties to learn, but more importantly, our students and parents connect to create one absolutely amazing community! Take a peak at what some of our classes look like. We also run events throughout the year, including our ice cream social, harvest fest, makers faire, winter dance, science fair, end of year party and way more!

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Read more, inspire, & engage at https://ru-now.org/

Unschooling means that you reject the standard public school system track, specifically the pressures and timelines that it puts on children.

It doesn’t mean that you have to literally never do anything learning-focused with your children.

Follow their interests. Trust their capabilities. Let them guide you.

Yes, all of that.

But it’s also ok if all of that leads you to using a curriculum, like the open-ended Your Natural Learner Curriculum (provided to our Bridge Academy students) for some soft structure in your days. 💚

This journey is uniquely yours. Unschooling can mean whatever you want it to.

💚🌳via Little Pine Learners

🔔 ANNOUNCEMENT 🔔

'25-‘26 WAITLIST: HV THIRSTY MINDS COOPERATIVE:
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>> Thank you for your interest in our cooperative. We enroll new families before our Fall Term and again before our Spring Term. We base admission on space, referrals, and families who are willing to be an instructor, as we cannot operate without them! Should we have room for your family, we will reach out via email from [email protected]. At that time, we will have you fill out a new family registration form, and submit a low, one-time (per term or year) family payment.

At HVTM, our goal is to create a fun, engaging, secular cooperative in which both children and parents benefit. We offer hands-on learning in a student/parent environment that promotes a tight knit community.

LOCATION: Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County
SETTING: We are a secular co-op, meeting in a rented church space with ample classrooms, a gymnasium, a kitchen, a nursery, an enclosed courtyard, field, woods, and a playground.
AGES: We organize our students into teams, based primarily on ages. Each team has between 25 and 30 students. Siblings under 3yo are also welcome to attend Red Team classes.
MEETINGS: Held each Wednesday from 9:30 AM to 1:30 PM
SESSIONS: Each week, your student will participate in three class sessions, each 45 minutes in length. We also incorporate breaks to encourage social connections.
TERMS & QUARTERS: We have two terms - fall and spring. Each term consists of two quarters (4 total for the year). A quarter lasts for eight meetings. We run continously from September through June.
CLASS OPTIONS: Our classes change each quarter, and are dependent on what our parent volunteers are planning to instruct. We aim for each team to be able to select from two class options for each class session time. Class offerings have previously included subjects such as: art, math, literacy, phonics, science, STEM, dramatic play, baking, board games, team games, history, typing, computers, physics, Spanish, music, story time, carpentry, public speaking, and so much more!
COST: Registered families pay one low fee per year of $195 (or $135 for one term). Some classes require a nominal materials fee. The materials fee is determined on a class-by-class basis, and will be included in the class descriptions. They typically vary from no-cost to $25 per quarter (most are about $10). There may also be general supplies required for a class, such as a smock or notebook. Occasionally, we offer classes from outside sources, such as on-site educator visits, or professional class instructors. These will have higher fees, typically not exceeding $50, and participation is at the discretion of each family.
COMMITMENTS: All families have co-op commitments. Opportunites include class instructor, teacher assistant, set-up, and clean-up. Our board members review unique family situations that make fulfilling commitments difficult.
DROP-OFF: Our cooperative is designed for most parents/guardians to remain on-site. However, we do allow limited drop-off for our 10+ year old students. We also allow drop-off, with certain limitations, for our younger students. Families still need to fulfill cooperative commitments, which will require some of their time being in the building each quarter.

Please don't hesitate to ask us any questions you may have before registering via email. Our email is [email protected]
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd3yzFrJBc9ru_kS6cIX-xPS1nTu2YPF59Fz4JdXLvstrvdZQ/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=104578904742503558094

Due to expected inclement weather, HVTM will be closed today, Wednesday, January 25th. Have fun out there!

As per our Family Handbook, our remaining four winter season meetings will now be: 2/1, 2/8, 2/15, 2/22

Check your inbox! 📧 Details for this Wednesday’s Meet ‘n’ Greet have been sent! Be sure to add us to your contacts so it doesn’t end up in your spam folder: [email protected]. Can’t wait to see you there!

Happy Saturday, y'all!

Paid/Fully Registered families, check your inboxes!
Partially Registered families, you're tagged below.
Waiting List/Interested families, sit tight! Limited spots will be opened soon!

Hello, families! We are pausing new registrations and opening a waiting list for the next few days to allow our board members time to assess numbers and class sizes. If you've already submitted a registration, please be sure to secure your spot by making your $60 deposit by this Friday, Sept 9th. Once we know what openings remain available, we will unpause registration for specific age groups.