Caroline Elness loves the one-on-one instruction that she can provide her kids by homeschooling them.

But after her church pastor suggested possibly starting a co-op – a weekly gathering of homeschooling parents and students where a variety of topics are taught in a classroom setting – she jumped at the opportunity.

First Class San Joaquin Co-op will officially begin on Wednesday, Sept. 21.

“We had some meetings and a lot of moms were really excited about starting this,” Elness said. “This is something that a lot of other towns around us have, but it’ll be the first in Manteca. I think it’s going to be something that’s very good for the community.”

Signups for homeschooled children and parents wishing to become involved will be held today from 3 to 5 p.m. at First Baptist Church – located at 715 E. North Street.

According to Elness, a variety of classes are already planned for the upcoming semester – which will run from Sept. 21 through Nov. 16. Crafting will be offered for pre-kindergarten through third grade, a finance class will be offered for fourth through eighth grade and an engineering class will be offered for the same age group.

A group PE class is also planned.

The low cost of the classes – only $35 per family for the entire eight-week block – will likely make them popular.

But that low student-to-teacher ratio isn’t something that that Elness or the other organizers are willing to compromise simply to get more students involved.

“We’d like to cap it at around 10 kids per class, and if we need to start another class to get people in then that’s what we’ll do,” she said. “A lot of moms have put in a lot of input, and I’m really excited about seeing this actually happening.”