SHARK Secular Learning Cooperative Inc. is a legal nonprofit organization registered with the State of Florida and the IRS under section 501(c)(3). SHARK is a secular, pro-science, inclusive, LGBTQIA+ affirming organization established for the purpose of bringing together homeschool families for social enrichment, information sharing, and educational opportunities. Our specific objectives include: · Serving the educational needs of homeschoolers and their families by offering classes, activities, and special events. · Providing support and information to people looking to homeschool. · Teaching children using logic, reason, and their own innate creativity for the benefit of themselves, their families, and the world. · Providing a safe space without discrimination for children as they learn to navigate social interactions.

A homeschool co-op is an organization in which all members work together to create a positive environment for homeschooled kids to learn about the world. In a co-op, all the jobs that make the organization functional and successful are done by the members of the co-op. For SHARK, this means that parents help out at the co-op by teaching classes or volunteering for jobs that we need done to keep the co-op running. This is why we require that all parents who are not teaching to sign up for at least 2 volunteer jobs every semester. SHARK is made up by all of us and cannot exist without the help and support of its members.

Secular means without the influence of religion. SHARK does not offer classes that are influenced by religion, either by including religious ideas or by leaving out ideas that may conflict with religious beliefs. Teachers are not allowed to discuss their personal beliefs with students.

You are welcome at SHARK no matter what religion you are! We only ask that your personal religion is kept personal and that it does not influence any class you teach at SHARK. We also ask that parents and children refrain from using SHARK events to promote any religion or religious activities they may be involved in.

Teachers set the age range for their classes based on the ages they prefer to teach and/or that their curriculum materials work best for. If your child is very close to the cut-off age, you may contact the teacher for that class and explain why you think your child would still be a good fit for that class. It is 100% up to the teacher whether they accept kids outside the age range for their class and they are not obligated to say yes.

View the Classes page for registration dates and times.

Go to the Join Us page and follow the instructions. You must be a paid member of the co-op to register for classes. If you have not completed the membership form and paid your membership fees ($26 per student), your registration will not be considered valid and your child’s spots in the classes will not be held.

Registration is on a first come-first served basis. SHARK admins and teachers are allowed a short period of time for priority registration. Afterwards, registration will open for all members of the SHARK co-op. We use Sign Up Genius for registration, which lists all registrations in the order received. Once a class is full (max numbers are listed in class descriptions), anyone beyond that will be placed on a waitlist and may get moved up if space in that class becomes available.

Membership fees are paid through PayPal Goods and Services. After you have registered for a class, the teacher for that class will contact you to let you know what the payment options are for their class. Teachers decide for themselves how they get paid and class payments are between you and the teacher. SHARK does not collect funds for teachers or pay teachers, as they are NOT employees of the co-op.

Anything you are passionate about! Share your talents, interests, hyper-fixations, and hobbies! You do not need to be a certified teacher or hold a degree in a topic to teach a class. We only ask that you keep it secular and that if religion will come up at all in your class that it presented in a factual way without any bias. For example, a class on world religions may present facts about what people believe but may not say that any particular belief is correct or incorrect.

No! Homeschool parents are welcome to teach one or more classes.

Teachers set their class fees per semester. We ask that you keep your class affordable but be sure to factor in the cost of supplies.

During the registration period, SHARK Team will send you contact information for parents that sign up for your class. You will be responsible for contacting parents and collecting your class fees. You may use whatever payment methods you are comfortable with. Teachers are not employees of SHARK. Therefore, SHARK will not be able to collect or distribute any class fees for teachers. However, if you experience any difficulty in collecting your class fees from parents, you may contact the SHARK Team to assist you in managing any issues.

Membership fees help to cover part of the rental costs for the facility, pay our liability insurance, pay for yearly tax filings, and cover the costs of running SHARK. SHARK is a registered nonprofit organization. All our leaders/administrators/helpers are strictly volunteers. We do not make money from running SHARK, but SHARK does cost money to run. We try to keep membership fees as reasonable as possible while still allowing us to continue to keep it running.

Each semester at SHARK, you will get: · Ability to register for that semester’s classes. · Access to a private co-op Facebook group for members only. · Access to other events SHARK may host, such as parties, field trips, pop-up classes, etc.