A Heap of Classes
Heyas there! Come on in and kick up your feet - stay awhile.
Somehow, through the miracle of pixel wrangling, you've wandered into my "classes" page - so you'll be able to find a breakdown, link, and some other extras for each offering below. It's worth noting that I'm always looking for new ideas for ways to teach communication, leadership, and cooperation... so please don't hesitate if you or your learners have ideas. Send 'em my way!
And, if you've missed my take on teaching, here it is in a nutshell:
Engaging kids in play allows them to learn in a unique and rather amazing way. Thus, I use a variety of sims and games that allow kids to dump their formal understanding of learning via memorization, lectures, and power point... and dive into a word where they can laugh and play and work with new friends. Within the confines of a safe environment and with peers from all over the world (who are generally not in their current social group), most don't even know that they're learning core skills that they'll keep and utilize all throughout their lives.
So then, take a look at the variety of classes listed below - and remember that you're always welcome to sit in on a class with your learner to see if it's right for your needs. (And if a class is listed but not officially offered online, just give me a yell and we'll find a time that will work for you.)
I love having people come by as it's the very best way to get a feel for the humor and fun that I work to bring to all of my offerings. Having kids feel safe in a spot that they own is the first and greatest hurdle in education. That starts and ends with their teacher.
Ages: 14 and up.
"Breacher up!"
Tier One is an ongoing class designed to allow learners to become integral part of a Special Operations team tasked with restoring order to an island nation that has come under a number of negative influences.
Using the ARMA III simulation, learners are given the choice of what role they'll play within the team, may earn rank and responsibility, will plan and execute complex and challenging missions, and will swiftly realize that there's much more to this class than simply shooting a gun.
As the instructor, I'm able to create obstacles and challenges for the team on the fly which creates a dynamic and truly sandbox environment perfect for learning. From complex multi-national wrangling for funds to negotiations with local factions - the ever changing dynamic on the ground makes for a deeply exciting experience for learners who are forced to think through problems both behind the scenes and in the heat of battle.
This class centers around:
A more realistic and immersive experience, learning patience, planning with others, working with the team to execute a plan, using specific communication to relay meaning, and learning how to both lead and follow.
Rating:
ARMA is a MilSim, with a "PG" rating based on the fact that it's a military based game with some FPS stylized violence.
Age Range:
Generally, this class requires a learner who is 14 and up.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"They're shooting at me, don't they know who I am?"
Ages: 14 and up.
"War... war never changes."
If you're a fan of RPGs, it's likely no surprise why I would include one here in my offerings. Role Playing Games offer an incredible variety of skills to learn all the while being immersed into a sandbox world where your actions have consequences. This is my longest running class, with kids returning year after year to continue their adventures in the Wastelands.
The Fallout world is one of amazing depth and fun, and learners are able to create a unique character of their own, join the group, and then savor the adventure! If your kidlet likes the Fallout world, this is a great opportunity to jump in and laugh with us.
This class centers around:
A relaxed experience where learners create custom characters and work with their group to accomplish short and (very) long term goals. It's quite normal for newcomers to enter the group, start within the current adventure, and then move right on into the next. Fallout is very communication and creativity intensive, with an emphasis on cooperation between players who are constantly faced with ethical dilemmas.
Rating: Fallout has a "PG" rating as it is a world based around a "Post Apocalyptic" setting with implied violence and moral decisions aplenty.
Age Range:
Learners from 14 will find this experience most enjoyable. As with the Tier One class - Fallout the RPG requires some patience, creativity, and dedication to the team. "Lone wolf" characters do not often fare well - just as in real life. :)
Favorite Quote from Class:
"This is a most unfortunate turn of events... but I'd do it again!"
Ages: 12 and up.
Let the sparks fly!
Blacksmithing is fascinating, and in this offering kids will have an opportunity to both observe and interact with a blacksmith as he moves metal, creates projects, and answers questions. Learners will explore the principles of blacksmithing, give input as a project evolves, and be inspired by how smithing has changed our world.
This class centers around:
While Blacksmithing 101 is a slightly more structured experience for learners (it's loud and thus questions have to be asked and answered in turn), it is an engaging and creative journey where kids can interact, hone their question asking abilities, and add their two cents about how a project should come together. Each week we'll return to a previous project and using student suggestions, begin anew!
Rating: Blacksmithing 101 has a "G" rating unless said smith pounds his finger. ;)
Age Range:
If your learner is from 12-17 and likes sparks, they'll likely want to dive into this class each week.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"Everything that you see is either heavy, sharp, or hot..."
"Time to Get Small..."
Grounded is a blissful, beautiful, and challenging sim where each learner takes on the role of a character within the game who has been made into a miniature version of themselves and must now work together the now enormous world of their back yard. Spiders, ants, and creepy crawlies abound in this fun little romp through the 'survival' game genre.
This class centers around:
Teamwork, teamwork, teamwork!
You're going to have to communicate, work together, and be able to laugh about being chased by a spider. Learners will get to build custom structures, work together to gather resources, and generally try to survive the night as they work to complete their quests - which lends itself to a great deal of 'learning without thinking about it.'
Rating: Grounded has a "PG" rating based solely around the fact that occasionally it will make your hair stand on end if you're not a big fan of spiders.
Age Range:
Grounded is a great class for learners 12 and up.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"Where are you?"
"In a spider, bruh."
Ages: 10 and up.
"Photography is never mastered..."
I've spent more than two decades now as a professional photographer - it's taken me around the world, shooting, teaching, and having a riot. Now, I offer all of that experience here in classes for your learners. From the very basics of photography to the complexity of photoshop, to simply having fun creating art, I work hard to cover it all.
This class centers around:
Digital photography... yeah, well... I think you got that. :)
Rating: Digital iNk has a "G" rating.
Age Range:
I'd recommend this class for learners from 10 on up.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"It IS like an eyeball..."
Ages: 13 and up.
"An axe, a boat, and an endless horizon..."
I've always been fascinated with Vikings... hey, I'm from Minnesota, what can I say? So, when Valheim was released, I was enthralled - and quickly realized just how conducive it was to capturing imaginations, learning leadership, communication, cooperation, and doing it all without kids even knowing that they were learning vital life skills. It's a beautiful game full of challenges, building, exploration, and sea monsters. What could go wrong?
This class centers around:
You guessed it... the big three: Cooperation, Communication, and Teamwork. Students who have these masteries under their belts are shown again, and again to be those who find greater success in all areas of life.
Rating: Vikings has a "13 and up" rating by CSM,
simply because it has fantasy violence.
Age Range:
I'd recommend this class for learners from 13 on up.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"Wait, how big IS this map?!"
Ages: 13 and up.
"Feed the snail!"
War Thunder has been around forEVah.
(Kind of like me.)
And somehow it keeps bringing us all back together.
Students band together to make things explode... that's the long and short of it.
Get in tank. Drive tank. Shoot at tank. Be shot at by tank.
Explode by tank.
And it's hilarious fun.
The backside of this is that we all have to work together in minute detail - calling out positions when under stress, trying to tell one another where we are while laughing, and working together to accomplish a surprisingly difficult goal.
This class centers around:
Communication under 'stress.' It's hard to talk while you're doing many things, but it is an essential life skill to be sure. Leadership and cooperation, of course, fall right into line and we learn them all without ever thinking about it.
Rating: WarThunder is a PG game if a learner is allergic to tanks.
It's a G game if a learner likes to play tag. :)
Age Range:
I'd recommend this class for learners from 13 on up.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"Hey I'm over here. Where? Here! Where here?"
Ages: 13 and up.
"Tentacle spike? Where?"
Don't Starve Together is a whimsical and intricate sim that allows learners to enjoy a 'survival' game with a cartoonish and hilarious bent. Classmates quickly realize that, while they may survive for a bit on their own, their real strength lies in banding together and working as a team - music to my ears.
Don't Starve Together is an award winning sim that allows learners to play as a unique character with special abilities, to puzzle through challenges together, explore a vast world, and face off against mother nature together in the on going effort to... not starve. At it's heart, it's an exploration game that blends kids together into a wonderful and quirky team that has to rely upon their communication, planning, and teamwork in order to survive.
This class centers around:
A relaxed and hilarious environment where students can build relationships, learn cooperation and communication, and generally have fun as they work to store up food, clothing, and protection for each season.
Rating: DST has a "G" rating in that it a quiet and rather adorable little romp through the world of survival games.
Age Range:
Learners from 13 on up will enjoy this class.|
Favorite Quote from Class:
"Don't go in caves, caves are the evil!"
Ages: 5-9
"Cowboys! Campfires!"
As a kid, that's all I needed to hear and I was all in - I loved anything to do with camping out in the wilds, tall tales, hats and boots and the old west.
Now, living out on my ranch, I like to give that same experience to kids who love these same things. Each week we'll start our fire, tell a story or three, pet the cats that wander by, and talk about life as a cowboy. Sometimes we'll have special guests (cats, horses, a surprise Yeti or rancher), and sometimes we'll just tell stories about the old west and laugh together.
This class centers around:
A safe space where young learners can return and know exactly what to expect. Looking around camp, starting the fire, telling a story. In much the same way as Fred Rogers would create comfort through repetition, we will focus on this as well. Learners will have a chance to ask questions, tell their own stories, and experience the world of being a cowboy out on the range.
Rating: Cowboys and Campfires has a "G" rating. The stories of the old west can be captivating, but are not scary or violent in our class. (I will actively adjust the class to the age of our learners, so don't hesitate to yell if you have someone who might fall outside of this 'suggested' age range.
Age Range:
Learners from approximately 5-9 years old will benefit most from this offering.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"How many cats do you have?"
Ages: 11-14
"Twenty questions... and then some.
Would You Rather is a class of introspection, of making tough choices, and of seeing more of yourself than just what is at face value.
Each learner has the opportunity to answer a random question, almost always based around making a decision in life and how to handle it - and then seeing how other students from all over the world might answer the same question.
This class centers around:
Listening skills, communicating your ideas accurately, and learning about both yourself and those around you. It's a fun and hilarious, sometimes touching look at humanity, who you are in the grand scheme of things, and why you approach life as you do. We'll focus on empathy, and why this is a life skill that cannot be ignored.
Rating: Would You Rather has a "PG" rating as kids who are dealing with reality tend to speak in real ways. ;) I don't go out of my way to filter language in this class as long as it's good natured and fun, adding to the class and building up others.
Age Range:
While the official range on this class is 11-14, it is flexible. Younger learners are placed with their counterparts as their experiences can be markedly different from their peers just a couple of years older.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"I would never... well, actually. Yeah, I would. Totally."
Ages: 13 and up.
"Twelve o'clock high!"
Furball is a technical and engrossing look at WWII combat aviation - take the controls, learn basic flight, and then take to the skies to do battle with your squadron at your side. For some of us, this sounds too good to be true, but come live the dream with us. We'll explore aviation and WWII history, air combat maneuvers, and communicating under pressure... it is fun.
This class centers around:
Learning how to accurately communicate while you are literally doing a half dozen equally vital things to keep your plane in the air. Learners will have the opportunity to both follow their team, and lead it - plan missions, and truly learn the meaning of teamwork. No one will survive if everyone doesn't pitch in at 142%. Occasionally, we'll have special guests - real pilots who have really flown in combat, who may stop by to tell stories, or even to fly with our team.
Rating: Furball has a "PG" rating though this is simply because it is a combat simulator and thus has implied violence.
Age Range:
In my experience, learners from 13 on up tend to thrive in this sort of history meets pew pew kind of class.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"They're at every o'clock!"
Ages: 12 and up.
"Writing is the singular academic skill..."
Whether your learner needs to prepare for college, simply enjoys weaving words, or absolutely hates everything to do with jotting notes... this class is designed to create a comfortable zone around the process. I've made it through a handful of degrees, a novel, and about twenty years of teaching it all - so I've most certainly experienced all of the highs and lows of writing academically and for the sheer joy of it all.
This class centers around:
Creative writing, college writing, and simply creating a safe space around the act of writing that will allow learners to not just 'write a paper' but also enjoy it all.
Rating: What's Your Story has a "G" rating.
Age Range:
If your learner is from 12-17 and either likes or needs some inspiration in their writing... here's your spot.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"Okay, this doesn't suck."
Ages: 14 and up.
"Zombies don't run... right?"
I held out for years on Project Zomboid as a class until one of my students from Down Under finally convinced me that it was legit.
Now, it's one of my largest classes. See, teachers are always right... right?
Zomboid is amazing in many ways in that it brings learners together into an environment where they most do many things at once in order to survive: Cooperate to build a safe space, gather materials and food and secure their basic life needs, fend off nature in the form of zombies (because who wants to be chewed on?), and negotiate with one another to create harmony.
Sounds a lot like life, doesn't it?
This class centers around:
Interpersonal relationships within the game, conflict resolution, learning to cry while laughing while running away, and organizing those things that are most important minute by minute.
Rating: Zomboid is a PG game simply because the zombies do like the taste of brains which requires mild simulated nomming.
Age Range:
I'd recommend this class for learners from 14 on up.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"I am Johnny Mystery, I solve crimes... and do them, that too."
Ages: 13 and up.
"I would rescue you but I might crash on you..."
Stormworks is a blissful playground of building and creation for learners who love to pour themselves into such things.
Build complex machines, build simple machines, build!
Students in Stormworks are given nights to free build - create anything that they want, and then nights of challenges to put those creations to the test - usually by rescuing me on some deserted island. It's an incredibly deep simulation where you get to put your brain into overdrive to solve the problem of the day.
This class centers around:
Cranking up your brain to ten or eleven in order to build the machines that will solve the problems... and I come up with some wicked problems.
Rating: Stormworks is a purely G rating on the days where Sully is not getting diced by the very helicopter that was built to rescue him... :)
Age Range:
I'd recommend this class for learners from 13 on up.
Favorite Quote from Class:
"Well at least the tsunami put out the forest fires..."
"Will you speak to our class..."
You betcha.
If your homeschool group has something that they'd like to do as a group, we can certainly talk about that - from photography to writing to sessions on communication, leadership, and teamwork, I'm happy to create a custom class for your learner(s).
Likewise, many of the classes that I have created in the past were direct recommendations from former students - so please never hesitate to yell in my general direction if you have a thought. I'll be happy to look at it with you and see how it might meet your learner's needs.