The Discovery Learning Center of Santa Cruz is a volunteer-run, nonprofit organization that provides learning resources to preschool, homeschool, and traditionally schooled families. The core of our mission is to provide a location and resources for pre-K through 8th grade family learning.  The DLC is there for you: explore our website to learn about our library, classes, clubs, and events. Coming Events Suki Wessling: Parent Education Series Suki Wessling continues the DLC's Parent Education Series with a talk on homeschooling and feminism. Check out any random group of homeschoolers, and you’ll see lots of moms…and the occasional dad. Women who benefited from feminism, who had their own careers and a life outside of the home, are now returning to the home. The homeschooling movement raises important questions for feminist moms: Can homeschoolers be feminists? Does homeschooling encourage our kids to think more broadly or more narrowly about women’s roles? How can our homeschools be places where all children learn to respect freedom of choice and freedom from prescribed gender roles? We’ll look at what feminism is, misperceptions about feminism, and how homeschooling can fit with feminism in its 21st century form. $ 2-5 requested donation Wednesday, March 26, 7:00 – 8:00 pm Fun at the DLC Spring Lending Library Hours Monday: 12:00 - 2:00 pm Tuesday: 10:00 am - 12:00 pm Wednesday: 2:00 - 4:00 pm 2nd Saturday of the Month: 10:00 am -12:00 pm | * DLC Current News *
Workshops This Week March 10 - 13
Our workshops are free to supporting members. A
$2-5 donation per class day requested of others to support the DLC.
Monday, March 10 2:30 - 4:00 pm Santa Cruz Homeschool Book Club Bookworms: Readers between the approximate ages of 7 -9 who are eager to learn. Each month we choose a novel and then meet to discuss and experience the book through multi-sensory activities. At each meeting we will spend 20-30 minutes on a focused discussion and do related crafts and activities. Reading Level: 3rd-5th grade. (Children read or may be read to.) Activity Rating: Mostly Mellow Leader: Charlotte Bibliophiles - Exuberant readers between the approximate ages of 10 and 14. We read one middle grade or young adult novel each month, including books with challenging themes that may not suit sensitive readers. We discuss the book from the standpoint of appreciative readers, with cultural and historical discussions as well as literary analysis. Time permitting, we do projects related to the book. Activity Rating: Mellow Leader: Suki Wessling 7:00 – 9:00 pm Homeschool Parent Support Group The Homeschool Parent Support Group is free and open to all homeschooling parents in the Santa Cruz area. It is an adults and babies in arms event. Prospective homeschool families welcome, too! Leader: Heddi Craft Cost: Free Tuesday, March 11 12:00 - 1:00 pm Middle Ages History Club Weekly history club for kids approximately ages 6-9 and their parents. We will be using Story of the World, Pt. 2, The Middle Ages as our guide and we request that you purchase or borrow the book and read the indicated chapters as noted on our class page before attending if possible. At each meeting, we will spend 10-20 minutes on a focused discussion of the reading and then we'll do art, projects, and games related to the readings each week. Please wear clothes that can get dirty. We will be doing activities related to Chapter 31 this week. Activity Rating: Tangy Leader: Heddi Material Fee: $2:00 per child 2:30-4:30 Young Naturalists Bi-weekly nature club for kids approximately ages 5-10 and their parents. We will be exploring the natural spaces around the DLC (Neary Lagoon, etc.) in order to observe and sketch our surroundings, note the changes over the seasons, and learn to identify plants and animals. We'll sometimes do indoor projects, but spend most of our time outdoors so dress accordingly. You and your child will need to bring a nature observation journal to each class. Please see our class page for our planned activities and other suggested items to bring along. Activity Rating: Tangy Leader: Heddi 2:30-4:30 pm Math Study Hall Bring your math questions, simple or complex. A quiet time to ask math questions one-on-one. Activity Rating: Mellow Leader: Melody Wednesday, March 12 2:30-5:00 pm Wild Child: Putting the Fun in Fungi What do mushrooms eat? What does it mean to be a decomposer? How can we work with mushrooms to clean water and soil? Come find out through a hands-on activity where we will make Mushroom growing kits that you can take home! The kits can produce delicious edible Oyster Mushrooms. Decomposer displays and books will be available to look at. Things to bring if you have them: Things that are decomposing, mushrooms, mushroom identification books. Cost: $10-20 suggested donation per mushroom kit. Activity Rating: Tangy Thursday, March 13 Weekly history group for ages 11 and up. We will be using the Big History Project (bighistoryproject.com) as our main source of material. Please sign up with heddicr@gmail.com for this class and she will give you access to the online classroom where you will need to complete the activities as noted on our class page before attending. Big history can help you get your mind around the whole of the past and understand the most important changes that have occurred during the 13.7 billion years since the Big Bang. You will get a sense of the huge scales of time and space and learn to see your place within the context of the entire Universe. Big history is the modern, scientific equivalent of the origin stories that have been told in all human societies. Activity Rating: Mellow Leader: Heddi Material Fee: small materials fee on some weeks 10:15-11:30 am Introduction to Electricity Workshop Based on the TOPS Electricity Unit, http://www.topscience.org/books/electricity32.html) we will explore dry cells, circuits in a series, parallel circuits, conductors, insulators, circuit symbols, drawing circuit schematics, resistance, fuses, and switches. This is a self paced workshop, so we will continue until most students have completed as many activities as they wish. (There are 20 total.) This will be a workshop (not a class). I will provide and set up materials and activities using activity sheets to guide students through hands on activities. Students and parents can work at their own pace to complete the labs. Students will be expected to work independently or in pairs with their parent/adult helper. This is not a drop off class. I will be present to answer questions and assist as needed. Please be sure that your child is interested in the topic and willing to work in a focused environment. Leader: Vaiva Age: Appropriate for 3-8th graders. Activity Rating: Mellow RSVP: Limited to 10 students, so please RSVP to vaiva@vaiva.com DLC Activity Ratings Mellow- this activity is calm, focused and tends to be structured, good for sensitive kids Tangy- this activity is a mix of calm and high energy periods, good for kids who can focus for short periods of time but also like to get up and move around Spicy- this activity is high energy with a lot going on, good for kids who like to be busy and active
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