Frequently Asked Questions
Straight answers about MindGarden, in plain language
If you don’t see your question here, the best way to get it answered is to schedule a tour. Use the contact form and we’ll find a time that works for your family.
Is this a homeschool co-op?
Roots is a co-op (parents stay with their children). Seedlings, Saplings, and Branches are drop-off enrichment programs. Parents drop kids off in the morning and pick them up at the end of the day.
The difference matters because most co-ops ask parents to teach or volunteer. We don’t. Our teachers are professional educators trained in Charlotte Mason and attachment-based practice. You’re paying for instruction, not trading volunteer hours.
What ages do you serve?
Currently 0 through 12, across three programs:
- Roots for ages 0–5 (parent-child co-op)
- Seedlings for ages 5–9 (two-day drop-off)
- Saplings for ages 9–12 (two-day drop-off)
Branches, our teen guild for ages 13–18, is in development for a future season. Add your family to the interest list and we’ll let you know when it launches.
Charlotte Mason & Attachment Science
What is Charlotte Mason education?
Charlotte Mason was a 19th-century British educator who believed children deserve a wide “feast” of living ideas, not a narrow diet of textbooks and worksheets. Her approach emphasizes great literature, nature study, art, music, narration (telling back what you’ve heard), and short, focused lessons across many subjects in one day.
She also believed children are “born persons” who deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, not empty containers waiting to be filled. That conviction shapes how we run the classroom. Read more about our philosophy.
What is attachment-based education?
It’s the idea that children learn best inside relationships where they feel safe, seen, and connected. Modern developmental psychology, especially the work of Dr. Gordon Neufeld, shows that attention, curiosity, emotional regulation, and academic capacity all grow out of secure attachment, not out of pressure or rewards.
In practice that means our teachers prioritize relationship before content. A child who feels welcomed and known is a child who can engage with hard ideas. Read about how this looks day-to-day.
Do you use rewards, behavior charts, or punishments?
No. We don’t use sticker charts, color systems, time-outs, or external rewards. Those tools work in the short term but undermine the relational foundation we’re trying to build.
When a child has a hard moment, our teachers stay close, help them name what’s happening, and give them space to move through it. Big feelings are treated as part of growing up, not as problems to eliminate.
Practical Logistics
Where are you located?
6503 Hixson Pike, Suite 105-C, Hixson, TN 37343. We share space with Jungle Fun Center. Most families come from Hixson, Chattanooga, Soddy-Daisy, Red Bank, and as far as Ringgold, GA.
What does a typical day look like?
Drop-off is at 9:00 AM (arrival starts at 8:50). Pick-up is at 2:00 PM (with a 10-minute window through 2:10). In between, kids move through short lessons in literature, nature study, art, history, music, Spanish, and handicrafts, with breaks for snack, lunch, free play, and a quiet reset. More about a Seedlings day.
What should my child bring?
A packed lunch, a water bottle, and a small bag for the day. Outdoor weather gear when it’s cold or wet (we go outside in most conditions). Indoor shoes if your child prefers them. We’ll send a full list once you enroll.
What if my child has never done drop-off before?
That’s common. We’re trained to help children bridge the separation from parents and settle into the classroom. For some kids it takes one morning. For others it takes a few weeks. Either way, our teachers stay close and stay calm, and we keep parents in the loop.
If your child is anxious about drop-off, we recommend scheduling a tour first so they can meet the teachers and see the space before their first day.
How does tuition work?
Tuition is monthly, billed automatically through our subscription system. Roots is $130/month per family. Seedlings and Saplings are $215/month per child, with a 10% sibling discount. There’s a $50 deposit at registration that’s applied to your first month. See all tuition options.
How many days per week is the program?
Two days per week (Mondays and Wednesdays) for Seedlings and Saplings. That’s roughly 72 instructional days over the school year, which Tennessee homeschool families count toward the state’s 180-day requirement. The other three school days, you handle reading, writing, math, and anything else your family wants to cover at home.
Roots meets one morning per week.
How We’re Different
How is MindGarden different from other homeschool programs in the area?
Two things, mostly. We’re secular, and we’re built around attachment-based, Charlotte Mason instruction. Most homeschool programs in this area are faith-based, which is a good fit for a lot of families and not the right fit for others. We exist for families who want Charlotte Mason rigor without religious content.
The attachment piece is harder to spot from the outside, but it’s the part that shapes the day. We’re not running a behavior-management classroom. We’re running a relational classroom where teachers are trained to care for kids the way developmental science says kids actually grow.
Why drop-off instead of a full-day or full-week program?
Because we believe parents are still the central educators in a child’s life, not us. Two days a week of enrichment is enough to give kids the things that are hard to do alone at home (group discussion, broad subject exposure, social-academic learning) while leaving room for the parent-led work that matters most.
Do you accept new students mid-year?
Sometimes. It depends on the program, the cohort, and where your child is developmentally. Reach out and we’ll have a conversation about whether it’s a good time to join.
Still Have Questions?
The best way to know whether MindGarden is the right fit is to come see it. Schedule a private family tour and we’ll find a time that works.