The Learning Café aims to bring a taste of the real world to children and adolescents in a safe environment.
The Learning Café aims to bring a taste of the real world to children and adolescents in a safe environment.
The new homeschool enrichment community was welcomed to Chardon with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Nov. 3.
The business, operated by Founder and Director Tania Bertolone and specialists Marty Moushey, Michelle Miller and Yvette Slusarski, aims to provide a unique learning experience for children and adolescents, with a focus on homeschool enrichment and homeschooling families.
The new space, at 106 Water Street, allows the Learning Café to offer what Bertolone said is the freedom, flexibility and choice parents want in education.
Some families want their children out of the home in a learning environment most of the day, but others only want to drop in for one or two classes, she said.
“There are families out there that are just looking for something different — COVID really accelerated that,” she said. “Parents realized, ‘Wow my kid doesn’t have to be in school six hours a day, Monday through Friday.”
Her goal is to create an atmosphere kids want to be in.
“I had to call a snow day the other day and they (said) no, please have school. They love to be there and that is what should be at the heart of learning,” she said. “If you can get a child to love where they are, what they’re learning, you’ve done your job.”
Bertolone’s years of educating middle-schoolers taught her that adolescents, especially, want to experience the real world.
Teens and pre-teens are longing for a place to call their own, according to her website, which added The Learning Café provides them with a safe environment where they can socialize, work, learn and create.
“The job of the adolescent is to practice real life, to practice their social real life,” Bertolone said. “They have that freedom to walk around the square and get to know the community.”
Bertolone said the space, which has a café-like feel, including snacks and a tea and coffee station, gives adolescents the chance to feel independent. The location also means students can interact with local business owners and eventually work or volunteer in their businesses.
The Learning Café allows families freedom, flexibility and choice when it comes to learning, she said.
Classes and workshops offered include social studies and history, science, language arts, mathematics, physical expression, and creative and performing arts. A new addition is a crochet class, taught by Slusarski.
The Chardon Area Chamber of Commerce hosted the ribbon-cutting and Thrive Performing & Visual Arts donated four tickets to the Geauga Theater.
Bertolone said Thrive Artistic Director Jim Boardwine was also instrumental in getting the Learning Café classroom space inside their building on Water Street.
“At the time, we were maybe going to be at the bottom of a church somewhere, we didn’t know,” she said, adding she and Boardwine just clicked. “We just hit it off and (the space) was perfect for us.”
