Seriously..

Discussion in 'Homeschooling' started by northernmomma, Sep 24, 2013.

  1. northernmomma

    northernmomma New Member

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    I run a local hs group for social/classes/field trips etc... 49 families... It's been going two years..in that two years of four to five activities a month, lots of parties etc and a monthly newsletter written by me... like two other people have organized things, no one has contributed to the newsletter at all...I do everything else with the help of my lovely family... :eek: I am feeling a bit disillusioned. I was hoping to see more people involved. Granted there is one new family who would like to host science fairs so that's a plus.... but seriously... Feeling a bit used. It's the start of a new school year and I feel like bailing on my own group :cry: Frankly my hubby and kids 10, and 8, have put in enough time and energy and need a break. So I ask you great ladies...what would you do?
     
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  3. crazymama

    crazymama Active Member

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    Require each family to plan one event each year? Maybe form committees responsible for different types of activities?
     
    Last edited: Sep 24, 2013
  4. 2littleboys

    2littleboys Moderator

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    I'd say exactly what you just said. Tell people that you can't continue running everything, and that the group will have to participate, or else the group will be dissolved. I had the same thing happen to a group. No one jumped in until they realized I was serious, but by then, I was gone. After falling apart initially, the group managed to recover and is run by everyone like it should be (but I didn't return).
     
  5. azhomeschooler

    azhomeschooler New Member

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    I run a group with 2 activities a month. I have a parent meeting at the beginning of the year (fortunately, that is the way it has been run since even before I joined) and parents sign up to cover the activities. I just make it very clear that I NEED the help and the kids do not want to hear me running each activity. Everyone has great ideas to share. I also put it out there that I would be happy to spread the word for field trips, but I need others to help plan. Just be very clear that you need people to step up. What bugs me is when I see people and they act like they have no clue what we have going on when I send out frequent reminders.
     
  6. mschickie

    mschickie Active Member

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    Our homeschool group requires that every family help out with something each year. For us it can be just helping set up or clean up an event but everyone has to do something (we have over 150 families in our group so it is on the large side). I see nothing wrong in asking families to each step up to take the lead on something during the year. If no one is contributing to the newsletter than send it out with just one thing from you and a note that there were no other contributions. After a couple of months of that someone else should step up or maybe the group just does not care about the newsletter and you can drop it.

    You might also think of forming a small board of a couple of the other Mom's and each can take charge of an area and recruit their own help for it (someone for classes, another for field trips...) If you tell folks that the group has grown so much that you need this to continue I bet a couple of other Mom's will step up. You cannot continue to do it all your self.
     
  7. Mouseketeer67

    Mouseketeer67 New Member

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    Our homeschool group has a facebook page. This group has 325 member families. We don't have group leader, or group dues, or faith statements. Everyone is welcome to join the group. We have traditional homeschoolers, secular homeschoolers, christian homeschoolers, unschoolers, cyberschoolers, and even families who have joined the group just so they ask questions about homeschooling. Everyone in the group is encouraged to post activities. We have a bowling team, a choir, ballroom dance lessons, art classes, spanish classes, Friday park days, painting classes for the moms, and numerous field trips. The group is also trying to get a homeschool band going. Maybe you can do something similar to this.
     
  8. northernmomma

    northernmomma New Member

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    Mouseketeer67 this sounds pretty much how this group was supposed to run. There was another group that actually ours just swallowed because it required people to do things and no one was doing them due to other people issues. So I started this one loosely with the idea that others would step in and take up the roles of making events and so on...it just seems like people don't want the responsibility. I think I am going to post a note calling for ideas because frankly I need to. :p Thank you all for your responses. I haven't been on here in so long I forgot how wonderful the Homeschoolspot was. I really need to come back more often :D
     
  9. mom_2_3

    mom_2_3 Active Member

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    Maybe change the activities a little. If no one is stepping up to plan projects or teach a class, then maybe limit the group to a monthly field trip and a park day. Then cut the newsletter down and even state in it that everyone is welcome to plan activities and to let you know so that you can promote the activity in the newsletter.

    If people are like me, I am so swamped most of the time, I can't read anything too lengthy. I like things that are short and to the point, listing the activities.

    Another thing is I would not like teaching a class or planning a science fair because, frankly, other moms can be rude and not appreciate what's being done. They would probably be critical of how I'm doing things and it would just upset me!

    If they are that picky about how something is done, they can do it themselves! But it probably wouldn't happen!

    Once we belonged to a field trip only group and we really liked that. That mom used Meet Up (a website) or maybe it was Yahoo Groups. She would ask for volunteers to do certain things for the particular activity. Also, if the minimum participation she set was not met, the activity didn't happen. I talked to her a few times, and it seemed like things were working out pretty well.

    Hope this helps. But yeah, make some adjustments so you can enjoy your group more fully. Nobody likes to feel taken advantage of.

    Best of luck!
     
    Last edited: Sep 28, 2013
  10. Maybe

    Maybe New Member

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    We have been having this issue. So this year, we changed this up. Our group has run more than a decade because I have home schooled 10 years and have always been in this group. This year, we purposefully sought people out and "required" that each person sign up for a role when they sign up to be in the group. It worked. It was that simple.

    Fact is, I think most people want to help, but they are scared to. They do not know what they are doing and are afraid of messing up and ruining something for everyone else, or looking bad. Even if they were small jobs, it was on a sign up. Everyone had to sign up for something.
     
  11. jennyb

    jennyb New Member

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    In our homeschool group, we have to sign an agreement, saying that we are willing to help with at least one class or activity, and that we will do our best to help in any way necessary. And then at the beginning of the year, everyone is assigned a job or class in someway. You either have to plan a field trip, teach a class, clean up after weekly group meetings or fill a board position. works out well that way. everyone knows they have to pitch in
     
  12. kbabe1968

    kbabe1968 New Member

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    I'm involved in several loose yahoo homeschool groups like this....and that is one of the things that they do. You not only have to plan one event each year - one of them, you have to pay an annual family fee to participate. It's small, only like $5 to cover any minor incidentals (and it's a website, not a yahoo group, so it might cover the hosting).

    You need to post (nicely) that you want to continue to see the group ebb and flow, but people need to step up (nicely, remember) and plan and organize. They might not even realize that you WANT them to do it.

    (((HUGS)))
     

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