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Start by clicking the blue button on the home page, to join the Interested Members email list. An email will be sent to you with information about the co-op, including the upcoming New Member Meeting date. After attending the mandatory New Member Meeting (the date is noted in the email you will receive) if you wish to become a member, you will be sent a link to fill out the Request for Membership. Once you complete this and your membership is approved, an email will be sent for you to pay the $30 Family Registration Fee. 

You will not be granted access to the private site if you have not attended the New Member Meeting and paid the registration fee.

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The New Parent Meeting is very important. We have seen a direct link in how well co-op runs and new families understanding of responsibilities with attending this meeting. We cover how our group works and expectations of each family. This meeting has become an important element to a successful and enjoyable first session for all new families.  Unfortunately, if you are unable to attend this meeting, you will not be able to register for that session, but there will be another meeting held prior to the next session. As long as you are on the Interested Family list, you will receive an email when these meetings are scheduled. 

Please note, while sometimes we host "open house" days during the co-op year, open house events provide more general information and do not take the place of the required New Member meeting that must be attended in order to register as a new family. 

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Yes, it will be refunded. However, we strongly encourage new families to find at least one class to take their first session with LT. The board members are happy to help you find class openings. We typically have space in some classes. They may not be your first choices but they will get your foot in the door, and you will have returning family status for registration next session. Many new families have done this and been very happy with the class they have gotten into and have enjoyed their session!

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Learning Tree has a building usage fee, insurance, website use and maintenance, cleaning supplies, and other general expenses. Our Family Membership fees are used for these expenses.

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Class registration opens at 10 am Eastern for each registration window day. Class registration closes at 9 pm on the Wednesday of registration week.  The schedule for who can register each registration day is noted on the Registration Dates chart on the website's homepage. 

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If you are a returning family and you are parked on class registration day, it is most likely because you did not pay your family session fee. Returning Family session fees must be paid 2 weeks prior to registration week (one week prior to the New Member Meeting date). This due date is noted on your session fee invoice. If you cannot pay your session fee by this date, contact the LT via email so that we can make a note on your account and manually unpark your account. If a delayed session fee payment is a need, we strongly encourage you contact us a day or two before registration so that we have time to make this manual adjustment. Session fees not paid or prior arrangements with the Board not communicated until the morning of class registration will be guaranteed a delay, since we are busy helping people with registration questions. All session fees must be paid by the close of registration week.

If you have paid your fee and it is still saying you are parked, please notify the Learning Tree board via email or a phone call right away. We will find out why this is happening and get it resolved as quickly as possible.

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To register for classes, you will log into the member side of the Learning Tree website. When your registration window opens (10:00 AM),  click on the Class Registration tab on the tool bar at the top. This will allow you to see the class registration grid. Open each class by clicking on the name of the class. When the class opens, your children’s names will appear with a box next to their name. Just click the box for the child you wish to enroll and then click add to cart. Once you have completed this step, your child will have the spot in the class upon the condition that you pay for the class by the registration deadline.

If a class you desire is full, you will have the option to be on a waiting list. If this is a class you really would like, please be sure to go on the waiting list. We still suggest that you enroll in another class if you see something that hour you would like to take. We never know if people on the waiting list will get into a class. Schedules do change and sometimes spaces open, so if you are interested in the class always put your child on the wait list.

DO NOT pay for WAITLISTED classes.  You will be notified if space becomes available and payment will be made at that time.

After you have completed adding all your classes for your family, click on the “View Class Registration Summary” at the top of the screen where the class grid is located. This will take you to the payment screen. Each teacher has a payment button. If you are taking more than one class from a teacher, all of those classes will be totaled to make one payment to this teacher. Simply click on the PAY ALL button for each teacher. This will route you to the PayPal screen for payment.  Always REFRESH your screen between payments to ensure you do not double pay teachers.

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Ideally once you complete your registration you should then go to the Payment screen and pay for your classes. We realize that not everyone can pay for classes on registration day. Class fees MUST be paid by the time registration closes for all groups, which is on Wednesday at 9 PM. If at that time your class fees are unpaid you will be removed from the class. If a class has a waiting list the next person on the class will be offered the space.

If you are experiencing financial hardship where you would not be able to attend LT classes we offer financial assistance. There is a form on the website you need to complete. This is only open to returning, not new, members.

If you need to request a late payment there is a form on the website for this as well. Not all teachers can accept late payments due to the nature of their class supplies. Once your form is received we will try to get an answer back to you within a day. Please be sure to submit a late payment form when you are registering. Do NOT wait until the last day payments are due to submit forms. We can't guarantee class spots at that point of registration without knowing your payment arrangements. Late payments are only offered to returning families. We ask that you not contact the teacher directly for arrangements. Without submitting the late pay form we have no way of knowing that you still intend to take the class. You would then lose the spot to the next person on the waiting list.

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After you have completed adding all your classes for your family, at the top of the screen where the class grid is located, there is a button labeled “Manage Registrations”. Click here to go to the payment screen. Each teacher has a payment button. If you are taking more than one class from a teacher all those classes will be totaled to make one payment to this teacher. Simply click on the PAY ALL button for each teacher.  This will route you to the paypal screen for payment.  Always REFRESH your screen between payments to ensure you do not double pay teachers.

DO NOT pay for WAITLISTED classes.  You will be notified if space becomes available and payment will be made at that time.

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You will have the option to be on a waiting list. If this is a class you really would like please be sure to go on the waiting list. We still suggest that you enroll in another class if you see something that hour you would like to take. We never know if people on the waiting list will get into a class. Schedules do change and sometimes spaces open up so if you are interested in the class always put your child on the wait list. We also use this information for future planning. If a class fills quickly and has a large waiting list we do our best to offer this class in a future session.

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No. Please do not pay for a waiting list spot!  Paying for the class won’t secure you a spot. It usually just ends up being more work if it needs refunded.  You will be notified if a space becomes available. After receiving confirmation that you still want the spot in class, the Board will add it to your schedule and notify you to pay at that time.

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No. Learning Tree only accepts payment on the website through PayPal.

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When viewing your Manage Registrations page,  accessed by clicking the Manage Registrations buttton at the top of the Class Registration grid, there is a cancel checkbox located by your registered classes and volunteer spots. Click the Cancel checkbox and then the Cancel button on the screen to remove the selected registration(s). 

The option for members to cancel their own registrations is open only until the close of class registration week on Friday at 9 PM.

If you need assistance with this, email the LT Board and we will remove the class for you.

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Open registration ends on the Wednesday of class registration week. Registration coordinators are finishing up schedules through the end of the next week. We are usually able to make changes through Friday of that week. After Friday, most schedules are complete and we will not make changes after this. If you need to drop classes after registration closes on Wednesday, please contact us and we will take care of removing classes. Refunds are not always possible at this point but are up to the teacher's discretion. Any classes dropped after the start of classes will not be refunded.

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This depends on the teacher. Most teachers cannot refund once registration week ends. Once fees are collected, class waitlist changes have been finalized, and registration closes, teachers have supplies to purchase and items that need ordered. Most teachers will not be able to refund after this point, since the money will have been spent. We are happy to ask the teachers for you, but please don’t expect a refund after registration week ends on Friday.

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Maybe. We know that homeschooled students often can work at advanced grade levels and we try to accommodate this when we can. Classes are available based on the child's AGE that is added to your family profile, not a grade level, so be sure to accurately note your children's ages. 

Allowing an exception outside the stated age range for a class is at the teacher's discretion. Depending on the content and material, some teachers prefer to keep their minimum grade level and not take younger students.

In order to be fair to all students the following process will be followed:

Example – 6^th grade student would like to take 7-12^th grade art

1, Since the class is structured for 7^th grade and up, the priority sign up goes to this age group of student. 

2. If, near the close of registration, there is still space available in the class, please notify the LT Board via email.

3. We will contact the teacher to obtain permission to enroll a younger student. Again, this is at the teacher's discretion. We ask that you please not contact the teacher directly about enrolling your younger student.

4. We keep a list of who is interested, and give priority to those that are the oldest requesting the class, and also by when they request, especially in a popular class where there might be limited space left.

We appreciate your patience and understanding with this area of registration. We all want our children to get the most from their classes. Our policy is in place to help make registration fair to all students. We don’t want students who are younger for the class signing up and thus taking a space from a student who is of the age the class is designed for, possibly leaving that student without a class to take at all that hour.

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Children need to be 3 by the day classes start for the session. 

If your child is 2 during registration week but will turn 3 before the first day of class, you are welcome to sign them up. If your child doesn’t turn 3 until the middle of the session, they cannot enroll in the class. Please see question above on my child not being old enough for the class but ready to take it.

Preschool level classes are intended to be for families with older children in classes. As such, if your oldest child is now preschool age, send an email to the LT board of your interest, and you will be notified of the ability to register for classes during registration week after it is clear that there is space available in preschool classes. 

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Each family is required to volunteer for 2 hours per week at LT.

The exceptions to this are:

- if you only attend one hour of class, then 1 hour is required, and the hour that you attend is the hour you will sign up for a volunteer spot.

- if you sign up to teach a class, the class you teach counts as a volunteer hour. 

A complete description of the volunteer policy can be found in the Member Handbook, available here. 

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Yes. When you sign up for a volunteer position, this is your place for the entire 10 week session.

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When signing your children up for classes, you also need to sign up for your volunteer positions. This can (and should) be done at the same time as class registration.

You can choose to add yourself as the classroom helper, by clicking on your name within a class, or scroll down past the classes to the Volunteers (Non-Classroom) grid, for non-classroom volunteer spots. Just as you signed your children into classes, you will choose the spot you would like to fill. Click the class or position name. When it opens, simply click the box next to your name and then click add to cart. (There is no charge added for volunteer positions "added to the cart".)  If a volunteer position is already filled, you will not be able to click on your name, so you must search for another available spot.

Be sure to register for 2 volunteer spots if you will be at LT for 2 or more class hours. If you are only registering your child for 1 class hour, then only 1 volunteer spot is required.

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You need to go to Edit My Profile and add your name to your member profile, where your children’s names are added. Board members try to make sure that this is done but sometimes this is missed! Once you edit your profile and add your name to the list of family members, your name will appear on the class/volunteer grids with a box to check.

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Sign up for another volunteer position. If there isn't a position available for the hour(s) you will be attending, please email the volunteer coordinator to ask for assistance with finding a spot.

We do our best to give everyone their first requests, but sometimes things have to be changed. Our number one priority is to be sure that we always have 2 adults in every classroom, and that all positions are covered for each hour. This sometimes requires that we make changes after registration closes, to cover the needs of the co-op. Thank you for understanding!

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We understand when you have certain needs with your own children, and we do our best to try to get you in the best place for you and your child. If you have special needs and cannot find a way to schedule yourself, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator directly.

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Volunteers are critical to co-op running smoothly.

It is your responsibility to find a substitute for your spot.

The Volunteer Schedule is located Volunteer Grid in the center of the LT homepage. Each hour there are multiple floats listed. Please contact a float for the hour you need covered.

If you are unable to find a float, you can also try contacting people directly that you know who might be volunteering a different hour to fill in for you. LT has a very supportive community and everyone helps each other out. If for some reason you are unable to find a float after following these steps, please contact the Volunteer Chair.

Once you have a sub for your position, call the volunteer chair to inform them of who will be your substitute. We need this information for the day of co-op, to be sure all positions are covered, so please be sure to let us know!

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We do have preschool age classes that are available each session. However, spaces for these classes are prioritized for families with preschool aged children who have older homeschooling siblings in LT classes. Families with whose oldest or only child is preschool age can be added as space allows, but are not added until later in registration week, once we see if open preschool class spaces remain. 

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Yes. We have a nursery available for children of teachers and classroom volunteers during their class time. 

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On the class registration there is a Nursery line. Just open this up as you would with another class, and add your child that needs the nursery.

If this child does not have their name listed with a box to check, you will need to go to Edit My Profile and add this child. Once you have done that they will appear and you can add them to the nursery.

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All teachers and volunteers are welcome to use the Nursery while they are in classrooms.

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No. The Nursery sign in/ drop off is strictly for those helping in LT classes.

But this is a good space for little ones who would like to play with toys and have a safe place to do so. Perfect for toddlers and crawlers. Parents are welcome to bring their little ones in to socialize, and this does not require signing in as you stay with your child. You also do not need to sign up for the nursery to use this space. Signing up on the website is only if you need to leave your child while volunteering.

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No. LT is a special community that runs well because parents are present and help make it succeed.

We do allow limited signing out to run errands, but this is not to be abused. Please see the "Can I sign out to run an errand?" question below.

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Yes! Many families run out to get lunch or do quick errands. In order to leave the building, a signed medical release form must be complete and filed with the Board. There is a sign out sheet you need to complete before leaving, and you must designate another adult who will be at co-op as a responsible party for your children.   

The sign out policy should be considered as an exception to the requirement for a parent to stay on site, so that occasional errands can be run; if the policy is abused, a member's ability to sign out may be revoked.

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If you were inactive the previous session, contact the Learning Tree board about re-joining. The board will open the link to allow you to register, and you will be added back in as a returning member. The family registration fee will be added to your account once you do that. You can pay the fee by clicking on the Outstanding Balance amount at the top of the homepage.

If you were an active member in the previous session, your account will still be active and the session family registration fee will be added automatically to your account.

The Family Registration fee for all returning members must be paid by 2 weeks prior to registration week, so that we know how many open spots to offer prospective new families.