Who are we?
We are a community of families in Central Arkansas working together to provide high-quality Charlotte Mason-based educational enrichment.
What do we offer?
We have varying classes each spring and fall semester, with occasional summer and winter offerings. We also sponsor hikes, dances, and movie nights for our families.
Who is behind Cross Creek Cottage?
Our founder and Creative Director is Ashley Franz, a homeschooling mom of 5 who is passionate about Charlotte Mason education, children, and families. Her desire is to support families on their Charlotte Mason journies and to foster a community that shares her vision of an idealized atomosphere for children. She wishes to provide families with opportunities to access this philosophy in their own homeschools.
Where are you located?
We meet in Central Arkansas at a privately owned building. Please email us for more specific location details.
What, or who, is Charlotte Mason?
Charlotte Mason was a brilliant 19th century British educator whose writings and theories seemed to have been lost for almost 100 years. Since "For the Children's Sake," a book about Charlotte Mason's method by Susan Schaffer McCauley, was published in the 1980s, her method has (thankfully!) been enjoying a resurgence. There is really no way to summarize her Educational Theory; you simply have to just read her books for yourself. However, she attempts to summarize her method within a set of 20 Principles which can be found in the front of each of her 6 Volumes. Her methods are fleshed out in detail within the pages of her books, providing both fascinating theory and practical how-to advice for each of her claims. Our co-op aims to follow the Charlotte Mason Method as closely as possible in each of our classes, and we always welcome advice and suggestions of how we might make our classes MORE in line with THE Philosophy.
What are your expectations of families who participate?
We ask that each family do just a few simple things to help make our co-op run smoothly. These are detailed in the handbook, which you may read at the bottom of the page. Some of the basic requests we have are these:
- Students: come to class on time, clean and ready to participate with a good attitude and politeness
- Students: Follow teachers' instructions and show respect to teachers, parents, and other students
- Everyone: Stay home from co-op when ill or after illness following the guidelines laid out in the handbook
- Everyone: Complete a Cottage Task for the semester to help keep the Cottage clean and tidy (these are assigned at Parent Orientation)
- Everyone: Help keep the Cottage a screen-free zone
- Parents/Guardians: Check email before coming to class for changes in class arrangements or for assignments
- Parents/Guardians: Attend Family Orientation at the beginning of the semester
- Parents/Guardians: Pay required dues in a timely manner
- Parents/Guardians: Stay on campus with students unless utilizing the buddy system or drop-off option
Can you give me more information about payment?
Payment Instructions:
Payments can be made in person or mailed with cash or check. Checks must be made payable to Cross Creek Cottage.
(1) Returning families will pay a registration fee of $25.00. This is for regular registration. Late registration is when all registrants, both new and returning, will be charged $45. New families will pay a $35.00 registration fee to establish their file and paperwork at CCC. When late registration closes, no more new registrations or changes to registrations will be made. You may still withdraw from classes at any time, but will only be refunded in full if withdrawn during the second week of class but before the third week of class. When you receive your class invoice total, you will also be invoiced for the family registration/late fees. Those utilizing the drop-off option will also be invoiced.
(2) Every class should have a supply fee of $3.00, unless additional supplies are needed by the teacher which will be indicated on the class.
(3) Each class will have its own tuition cost.
Payments must be made in full before your first day of class. Full refunds will be given if you withdraw your student from a class UP UNTIL the 3rd week of class. After this day, no refunds will be given. Therefore, as long as classes are still meeting and not suspended due to Covid, classes are not refundable after that day.
Are there any discounts available?
Yes! You can join our Charlotte Mason Study Group, and this will earn you a discount on your family registration fee. This is a very good incentive to continue your own education about homeschooling with the Charlotte Mason method.
Study groups are offered at several different times.
Study group options:
1: Listen and Discuss podcasts or videos outlining the Charlotte Mason Method. No homework. Earns you a 50% discount on your family registration fee.
2: Charlotte Mason Volumes Study Group: Read on half of one of CM's volumes during the term; provide a written narration each meeting for 1/4 of your assigned reading. This usually takes 2-3 hours (average) per week in reading and writing (but it's so worth it!). This earns you a 100% discount on your family registration fee!
You'll have to pay your registration fee online in order to sign up for things, but we will refund you your registration fee at the end of the term if you have signed up and participated in at least 75% of your study group meetings.
Why are some classes more expensive than others?
There are two tracks for teachers at CCC:
(1) Volunteer: You can teach as part of the CCC volunteer homeschool co-op.
(2) Independent Contract: You can teach at CCC on the Free Market! Offer your class to the community and charge whatever you want. Requirements to do this are (1) Your class must be "Charlotte Mason Approved" and Ashley Franz, Director of CCC, will decide if your class fits, and (2) a 30% fee to CCC (if you charge a student $10 for a class, you get 7 and CCC gets 3); this is to help cover CCC expenses such as building rental, heat and air, water, toilet paper, cleaning supplies, your spot on our website, exposure and students for you, collections, and administrative hassle! You can also opt for a flat hourly rate if you prefer.
Do you have a special interest that you think would fit at our school? Please contact us and tell us all about it! We'd love to have you! We are always specifically looking for retired individuals who want to share their knowledge.
I hope this helps explain why class prices are kind of all over the place!
What is your COVID policy?
Policy for COVID or other Health Crises: Mask requirements will be up to each individual teacher. Cross Creek Cottage requests that everyone make an attempt to social distance or opt outside if at all possible; ultimately, the amount of social distancing you require is up to you, the individual. If an immediate family member of an CCC student or teacher tests positive for Covid-19, that family will be required to stay home from CCC for 2 weeks or until that family’s quarantine has ended per current government policies. If a student at CCC tests positive for Covid-19 and has exposed the other students at CCC, CCC will close for two weeks from that student’s positive test. Please do not enter CCC if you suspect you have Covid-19 or if you have similar symptoms. Please test for Covid-19 and let us know the result if you have symptoms. In the event a family contracts Covid-19 and has to miss two weeks, there will be no refund for the missed classes. If the entire school closes down for Covid-19, there will be no guaranteed refunds, but we will do our best to pro-rate tuition. Openness and honesty is of utmost importance in a community setting during a pandemic; please err toward over-sharing information about your potential exposure rather than under-sharing, as many of us have direct contact each week with grandparents or other health compromised loved ones. CCC does not want to be responsible for an outbreak pocket of Covid-19 which results in serious illness for anyone’s relatives or friends.
What is your mask policy?
We have chosen to allow each individual teacher to decide what his or her mask policy is for their individual classes. We plan to allow for proper ventilation and sanitation during co-op hours. We will encourage gathering outside and/or social distancing when classes are not in session or if there is time in between classes.
We at CCC ask that you carefully consider and decide what is best for your family when choosing which classes to attend. We take health seriously and believe in keeping our space clean and pleasant. We also believe it is important for everyone to stay home if they feel sick. For further information on our stance, please refer to the handbook.
What can I do if my child is in a class and I'm staying on campus while they take the class?
Each student's parent or caregiver is required (unless utilizing one of our drop off systems) to stay on campus during classes. Here are some things you can do while you wait for your child during class:
- Sit in on/help with a class
- Help with tidying up such as cleaning a bathroom, taking out trash, wiping tables, etc. (Each family will be given a cleaning job at the start of the semester, so this is a great time to get your cleaning job completed!)
- Chat with other parents in the sitting room
- Teach a class (talk to us about getting on the schedule!)
- Participate in Moms' Book Club or do your book club homework
- Sit in your car for a few quiet moments and work on your phone or computer or READ!
- Walk or jog our driveway hill
- Do laundry (Yes! Our school has an available washer and dryer! Just bring your own detergent and your laundry and get it done while classes meet!)
What are Forms?
Form 1 = Ages 6-8 or Grades 1, 2, and 3
Form 2 = Ages 9-11 or Grades 4, 5, and 6
Form 3 = Ages 12 and 13 or Grades 7 and 8
Form 4 = Age 14 or Grade 9
Form 5 = Ages 15-16 or Grades 10 and 11
Form 6 = Ages 17-18 or Grade 12
Do you have a handbook?
Yes, it's linked below! Click to download.
Cross Creek Cottage Handbook |