Fencing

Maria Benford and Kailan Benford of Minnesota Sword Play

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $150 for the 12-week Fall Semester

Classical fencing emphasizes the practice of the sword as an art, a science, and a recreational activity. Learn the basics of fencing with minimal rules and lots of play. You will learn at a comfortable pace and fence with others of all levels in a fun, safe, active environment.

Students should wear long jogging-type pants, a T-shirt, and tennis shoes, and bring a water bottle.

All fencing equipment is provided.

This full-year course will be open to new students for the Spring semester.

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Drawing Fantasy Maps and Tokens

Tim Hereid

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $215 for the 12-week Fall Semester
• Supplies: $25 for the 12-week Fall Semester

Create dynamic battle maps, sprawling cities, modest hamlets, rugged mountainscapes, and paths through dense and dangerous forests. This course is great for anyone who loves drawing, role-playing (as a GM or player), and imagining new worlds. Whether you’d simply like to learn how to better draw a tree or rock or you’d like to create an entire continent of maps, this is the class for you.

Using analog methods of creation (with an option for digital creation depending on access to enough devices), this class will teach students how to create maps for role-playing, imaginative play, and just plain fun. Course maps can be used for both in-person and online play.

We will use the “Paint-Night” method of instructor-led creation at the beginning of class before students can spin off their own projects.

$25 supplies fee covers markers, pens, pencils, erasures, paper, and other art supplies

We will do our best to finish images/maps in class, but it may be the case that students will need to spend up to 30 minutes per week to finish work between classes.

This class will have a group project option.

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Costumes and Cosplay

Sarah Beggs and Janet Lewis of Fiber Works MPLS

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $180 for the 12-week Fall Semester
• Supplies: $10 for the 12-week Fall Semester

We’ll take a look at Anime, cartoons, comic books, manga, TV, and video game characters. Come up with creative ideas to take your drawing from paper to reality. Learn sewing basics. We will take a look at fabric, materials, and tools best used for costumes. We’ll spend time with construction, making patterns, cutting, gluing, and finishing. Characters all need props and make-up, so we’ll spend some time with prop ideas and how best to make them. Basic make-up techniques and products.

Most materials can be sourced free or very cheaply. Access to a sewing machine is helpful but not required.

$10 supplies fee covers fabric for weekly assignments, thread, pins, and sample kits

Students should bring a sketchbook, drawing tools (pencils, pens, colored pencils), and any other materials students determine needed for their final project to class.

Hand-sewing needles & thread are useful but not required.

Most weeks there will be about an hour of work to complete at home including sewing, sketching, sourcing materials, and research. There are weekly fun assignments and challenges. Each class will begin with a short review of the completed assignment and how it might factor into your project. Success in this course is dependent on students doing work outside of class. While this is not a graded course, we expect all students to complete all of the assignments to the best of their ability.

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Journalism/PHS Newspaper

Rebekah Jorgensen

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $165 for the 12-week Fall Semester

This class will provide students with the opportunity to produce a newspaper for Planet Homeschool. Within each class, students will receive an introduction to journalism topics, such as ethics in reporting, accuracy, professionalism, history tidbits, and more. The majority of the class will be spent creating a newspaper for the Planet Homeschool community. Students are invited to join this class if they have an interest in writing, art, and/or photography.

Students will be expected to complete approximately one hour of homework outside of class, primarily writing, but also including some reading and exploratory videos, and will be provided with additional enrichment activities to extend the learning if desired.

Students may choose to co-create columns or articles using Google Drive or other collaborative methods.

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Painting

Kimberly Guedes

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $150 for the 12-week Fall Semester
• Supplies: $40 for the 12-week Fall Semester

Students will learn the fundamentals of painting, including color theory, composition, and brushwork. Students will have the opportunity to work with a variety of painting mediums, such as watercolors, acrylics, and oils. They will also learn about different painting techniques, including blending, layering, and texture.

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Sign Language for Beginners

Tim Hereid

• ages 10–19 years
• This 28-week (35-hour) full-year course.
• Tuition is paid in two payments:
  • $233.38 (12 weeks) is due by Sat 2 Sep 2023
  • $310.62 (16 weeks) is due by Sat 6 Jan 2024

This introduction to Sign Language will walk students through the fundamentals of this dynamic and complex form of communication. Taught just like a first-year course in any language, this class will teach grammar, usage, vocabulary, and “survival” sign language to beginning students. Class will be taught simultaneously in English and Sign Language, providing students with a language-intensive environment in which to learn. Students will learn how to negotiate basic social situations in sign language and to talk about themselves, their environment, travel, food, clothing, and everyday tasks, among other topics.

As Tim’s brother-in-law is deaf and Tim’s sister-in-law is a sign-language interpreter, he regularly uses sign language and has been building his fluency over the past ten years.

$40 supplies fee covers copies, treats, and other supplies for both semesters

Students should plan to spend around 5 to 10 minutes practicing daily.

Reference: Lifeprint

This full-year course is only open to continuing students for spring semester.

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Animal Husbandry

Jennifer Floyd

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $151.25 for the 12-week Fall Semester

This is an 11-week (13¾-hour) Fall Semester class. There will be no class on Friday 22 September 2023 (the third week of PHS classes). Tuition has been adjusted to reflect this schedule.

This is the class for learning about domestic and pet animals! What range of vision does a horse have? Why do goldfish prefer friends? How long can a chicken live? Find out the history, care needs, and interesting biology facts of many commonly kept critters, from guinea pigs and hamsters to sheep, goats, and horses, to cats, dogs, and more!

Students will take notes and create an illustrated journal based on their favorite animals.

Students should bring a notebook or journal, pencils, and colored pencils (primary colors at a minimum) to class each week.

Students will research and present information (can be written, oral, or visual) based on an area of interest within the course’s range of focus. This project will be worked on both in class and at home.

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Designing Solutions to Everyday Problems

Peter Hoh

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $180 for the 12-week Fall Semester
• Tuition: $15 for the 12-week Fall Semester

Students will learn to use the engineering design process to identify problems and then design objects that address those problems. We will examine problems from different viewpoints. Students will progress from an idea to a drawing to a prototype. We will develop skills for making things out of inexpensive materials such as cardboard and modeling clay. Along the way, students will have multiple opportunities to strengthen their problem-solving skills.

This is a low-tech class. Peter will provide materials such as cardboard, wood, modeling clay, pipe cleaners, craft sticks, basic hardware, and string along with appropriate tools. Students may opt to refine their prototypes with different materials, which may involve learning to use additional tools or processes, some of which might be beyond the scope of this class. If a student has an idea for a project that involves electronics (an Arduino, for instance) Peter will support them as much as he can, but they will have to provide their own electronic components and may have to reach out to other people who know more than Peter about electronics.

$15 supplies fee covers masking tape, glue, paper, cardstock, index cards, brass fasteners, zip ties, and hardware (nuts, bolts, screws, nails)

This class is appropriate for all skill levels.

Students should bring safety glasses to class if they intend to use saws, drills, or similar tools in class.

While time will be provided during class for design work, some students might prefer to think about their design between class sessions. When we start making projects over multiple sessions, families will be responsible for transporting the partially-finished projects to and from PHS weekly. Students might be assigned a homework task that involves recording how other people use an object. If their project is to design a key rack, for instance, it may be necessary to measure the heights that different family members consider convenient.

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LARPcraft: Creating a Live Action Role Play

Nic Rosenau and Séa Blake

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $180 for the 12-week Fall Semester
• Tuition: $10 for the 12-week Fall Semester

LARPing is a great way to get exercise, build friendships, and improve social and communication skills including problem-solving and the art of negotiation.

You’ll use creativity, imagination, and strategy for story writing, world-building, and character creation and development (including costume and prop design and construction).

Students will work together to create a world, build a storyline, and create characters complete with a backstory and costume. The class will end with a LARP in which students will act as characters who advance the storyline and to which friends, family, and PHS members will be invited.

$10 supplies fee covers basic costume and prop construction materials such as glue, tape, thread, pins, etc.

Students will want to source materials for costumes and props to enhance their own characters and the world we build together.

Students will spend some time at home working on fleshing out their characters and the storylines and hunting for materials to build costumes and props as well finishing work on those.

The storyline will be built out via Google Docs which students may choose to work on individually or together outside of class.

Our final LARP will happen in the Fellowship Hall on the last day of class.

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PHS Clubs

• ages 10–19 years

Art Club

Coding Club

Game Club

Maker Club

RPG Role Playing Club

Social Club

Video Game Club

PHS Clubs are open to gamers and creators of all skill levels. Those with more experience will help you learn — and learn from you in turn!

All participants must sign up for insurance and safety reasons, but all PHS Clubs are open to visits from other clubs’ participants. Maybe some days you’re in the mood to draw, other days you feel like playing Uno, another day you want to relax and chat, and sometimes you just want to curl up in a comfy chair and read a book.

It’s easy to get boisterous when having fun, so PHS Clubs participants should be mindful of each Club’s focus, their fellow students (and their belongings), the shared classroom space, and the other classes in session. If in doubt, please defer to the Onsite Volunteers.

Families of enrolled students will work together to ensure there are games to play and raw materials and tools for creating.

Parents, guardians, and caregivers of enrolled students serve as volunteer room monitors or fellow gamers and creators to ensure there are at least three adults on site every week. These are assigned as Fourth Onsite Volunteer shifts. Some students will need adult direction and assistance with making connections with their fellow students and engaging with the activities of the PHS Clubs. If you notice a student at loose ends, please step in: offer to introduce them to other students, help them find an engaging activity, or help them create a space for gaming or creating.

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Second Period (10:30 AM–11:45 AM)

Collaborative Theater and Storytelling

Rebekah Jorgensen

• ages 10–19 years
• Tuition: $165 for the 12-week Fall Semester

This is a synchronous (real-time or live) online course held on Thursdays. Classes will be held via Skype. Students without Skype accounts will still be able to join using the web-based version. (Another platform may be needed, subject to student consensus.)

This course will provide students with an opportunity to create a web-based theater production. By incorporating creative writing, art, design, and stage presence, students will learn to create a modern dramatic performance created specifically to utilize the characteristics of online videoconferencing software. By thinking outside the box, students will be encouraged to produce a show that explores methods that aren’t always possible in a traditional theater setting.

Students will be expected to complete approximately one hour of homework outside of class, primarily writing, but also including reading and watching exploratory videos, and will be provided with additional enrichment activities to extend the learning if desired.

There will be some use of Google Drive for peer editing and collaborative writing.

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By arrangement

Small Group or One-on-One Math Lessons

Judy O’Neill

• ages 10–19 years
• One-on-one tuition: $36 per week paid monthly at $108 per 4-week month
  • This is a 10% discount for individual tutoring offered to PHS registered students!
  • Small group pricing will be determined based on group size and level.

One-hour synchronous (real-time or live) online lessons held via Zoom.

Small group or individual math classes based on students’ level, from elementary mathematics through pre-calculus.

Day, time, level, and textbook will be determined per group or per individual student.

Some levels of math will require a calculator. There will be weekly homework assignments.

Those seeking small group lessons should post to our co-op forum stating their interest and their students’ math level.

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PHS is a Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit and your donation may qualify as a charitable deduction for federal income tax purposes.

Support PHS

Contact our co-op’s Lead Volunteers at PlanetHomeschoolMN@gmail.com.