A watch party group discussing what they've just learned.

Learning together is trending, here’s how

ByBecky McCray

Deb Brown just told me that “cohort based learning” is trending according to Trends.co. They said learning in a group leads to 80-90% higher completion rates than learning alone. I’ve seen similar numbers before. 

So if you want people in your town to learn more about the Idea Friendly Method or any topic at all, start a group.

Like your book club for a better town.

In Caldwell, Kansas, Jill Kuehny told me they have a group called Mule Mondays to talk about making Caldwell a better community. They’d get together on Mondays at this place that served Moscow Mules. (So, Mule Mondays.)

In Sublette, Illinois, Don Dinges told me that young people had started a group they called Sublette 365. They said they can do something for the community every single day.

You don’t have to be a big town to have a cool group like this. Caldwell’s population is just over 1,000. Sublette’s population is around 400 people. 

Here are some ways to learn as a group with SaveYour.Town

  • Be a member, and set regular watch parties.

When the Texas Panhandle Women joined as members, they had members widely spread across the sparsely-populated Panhandle. They held virtual watch parties so they could all attend from their homes. Even though they couldn’t get together in person often, they could build connections and community through watch parties. 
We’ve designed our membership to be flexible like that. Deb tapped her chamber of commerce experience to put together these Watch Party ideas to get you started.
You can pick the videos that best meet your needs from our archive, plus all the new videos we do this year. Learn more about membership here.

  • Get a group together for a short course.

When Jeanne Cole from Waynoka, Oklahoma, took our Pop-up Fair Mini Course, she brought together a small group to work through it together. Not only did they finish the course, they held a very successful first event and immediately scheduled a second.
You can learn with our Tour of Empty Buildings Toolkit or Pop-up Fair Mini Course. And soon that will include our new Idea Friendly Toolkit. (ETA: April)

Bonus: Complete any short course, get a certificate! 

That might be just the boost someone needs to stick with it. If you’ve completed one of our short courses before, login to check for your certificate or shoot us an email. 

Keep shaping the future of your town,

Becky

Photo: A watch party in Superior, Arizona, discusses a SaveYour.Town video. Photo provided by Mayor Mila Besich