Founded for city homeschool families, by city homeschool families.
We know what it’s like to feel alone in your homeschool journey. To have all the best practices from the national homeschool voices, but to feel lost about how to apply their voices to your urban setting. We’ve played the “car-school” game, spending long hours just to get to supplemental in-person enrichment options. After years of journeying in the city on our own, we created a city-based solution. With the launch of City Grown Kids in Los Angeles, we want to help you and your city kids enjoy excellent in-person classes close to home. We can’t wait to get to know you and to journey together!
Core Values
Literature Rich
We soak in intentionally curated sets of living books that delight and inspire. History, science, geography, language arts, fine art, culture, social studies and so much more of the world is spread out like a feast before our children through the use of excellent books.
Nature Infused
Our classes are held outdoors in urban natural centers of cities, connecting families to the wild plants, animals, insects, and environments they share with their city.
Classically Minded
While giving a nod to all the best parts of a classical education (memory work, reading great books, engaging in critical thinking skills) we also follow the model of Charlotte Mason with a strong emphasis on nature exploration, short lessons, and living books!
Locally Engaged
We keep you in the city where you live, work and play. One of the best parts of the homeschool rhythm is the freedom – to explore parks and museums, to befriend neighbors, to serve the elderly, to add beauty. Our geographic focus is central so you do not have to commute and you have margin in your days for what matters.
Parents Present
We firmly believe in parent-led learning. Our class facilitators do not take the place of the parent home educator. Our classes strengthen the connection between parent and child by facilitating learning together.
Inclusive Learning
Homeschooling can feel like having your own one-room schoolhouse! That extends in our classes. Facilitators are homeschooling parents, and students span a wide age range as they learn among their siblings and friends. Older students help younger students and the whole family is involved.
The Team
Christina Dillard
Co-Founder, Head of Brand
Christina spent the last 11 years having and homeschooling children in the city. In 2020 she began guiding friends as they chose to educate their kids at home. Guiding turned into hosting, and one bright December morning as she facilitated crafting holiday decorations around her table amidst dozens of busy hands the idea for City Grown Kids was born. She has a BA from USC and she and her husband Brian live with their five children, 2 cats and very large dog in a little house in South Los Angeles. A hopeless anglophile, Christina began memorizing Shakespeare with her children when the oldest was 5!
Emily Pauls
Co-Founder, Head of Student Experience
Before marriage and motherhood, Emily enthusiastically taught high school math in Los Angeles. Now as a mom of three, she brings her love of learning into her home. January 2023 saw Emily pivot her eldest into homeschool with a heart to be more involved in her daughter’s education. She started City Grown Kids to create space for connection and robust home education in the city. Emily has a BS and Masters in Education from UCLA. She and her husband Jeff live in Los Angeles with their three daughters and energetic pup. Like any sincere mathematician, Emily and her family celebrate Pi Day every year – with gusto!
Joey Elliff
Course Developer, Spanish Immersion Facilitator
Joey lived a relatively normal life until her family moved to the Canary Islands of Spain. Thanks in part to a healthy dose of peer pressure, she learned Spanish quickly and developed a love for languages. She built on this love in college by studying ancient languages and second language acquisition. She then taught for 4 years in a first grade bilingual program in Texas to children from Spanish speaking homes. Now she has a Spanish speaking home of her own! She loves applying the principles she’s learned along the way as she raises and homeschools her four children bilingually, along with her husband Bryan.
Carol Carey
Charter Liaison, Custodian of Records
For 20+ years Carol has taught many ages and subjects throughout California. Before teaching, she was a stay at home mom. Her best “job” to date, though, is being her grandchildren’s homeschool science teacher. She jumped on with City Grown Kids because she sees the beauty of the homeschooled life her grandkids lead, and she wants to bring that to more and more families. Carol has single subject credentials in Science and Physical Education and a Masters Degree in Cross-Cultural Education. She lives with her husband Mike in south Orange County, CA, close enough to the city for the grandkids to visit often.