Couple to Couple League - Pacific Northwest - Learn Natural Family Planning This page updated: October 1, 2008

Learning NFP is for:	Engaged couples to start their marriage on the right foot; Married couples to regain their marriage from contraception; Medical students & professionals to broaden their expertise; Christians (most churches have a history of rejecting contraception); Non-Christians (NFP is the most healthy and ecological method of family planning).

Two ways to learn NFP:

• CCL offers both classroom-type and guided home-study options.

• We strongly recommend classroom instruction due to the immediate and direct interaction with the teaching couple. Courses are offered at locations throughout Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Details on these classes are given below.

• For those unable to attend classroom instruction, CCL has also developed a home study course. This option covers the same material as the in-person instruction, but is on a more self-scheduling basis with assistance from CCL's central office.

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Scheduled Classroom-type Offerings

For course content or scheduling related questions, contact a teaching couple near you. The below list of classes is not all-inclusive since some teaching couples offer series on an "as needed" basis. Thus, if you don't see a course below that fits your schedule, check CCL Central's world-wide listing of instructors to see if there's an instructor in your area.

If you don't see any CCL instructors in your area, check this list of NFP teachers serving Western Washington

Schedule subject to change. Always contact the teaching couple to let them know of your desire to attend a course.

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Classroom Instruction Details

• What is it?   A course consists of three sessions spaced about a month apart. Each session is two to two-and-one-half hours long. Couples start charting their fertility after the first class. Personal counseling is available at each meeting, between meetings, and after course completion.
• Who teaches the course?   Courses are taught by CCL couples who have completed a formal training and certification program.
• What materials are there?   The course packet includes the student manual, a digital basal thermometer, charts to track your fertility, and additional reading materials.
• Is there a course fee?   Yes, there is a course fee to cover the cost of instruction, the materials, and a one-year CCL membership. CCL membership entitles the couple to continued NFP counseling, the right to re-take NFP classes at no charge, and the League's bimonthly newsletter Family Foundations. No couple is turned away due to inability to pay; we can and will work with couples in this situation on a case-by-case basis. (In the state of Washington, sales tax must also be charged.)
• What about future expenses?   Future expenses are minimal: less than $5 per year for charts and a thermometer battery every few years.
• How do I register?   Find a series that best meets your schedule and travel constraints. Contact the listed teaching couple. They will initially need to know your name and that of your fiancée (spouse) and a phone number or email to contact you at.
• What if I miss a session during the course?   If at all possible, you should attend all three sessions of the course. Should you miss a session, you can usually work with the teaching couple to make up the lost instruction. Missing a session, particularly either of the first two, will deprive you of too much instruction. In that situation, you should wait for the next course in the area or enroll in the homestudy course.
• Can I switch between courses?   While not optimum, you can switch between courses; please contact the teaching couples for both of the courses involved and let them know, in advance, of your need to transfer.

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Home Study Course

While it is best to learn NFP in a classroom setting where questions can be asked and answered immediately and in person, we understand that sometimes it becomes impossible for a couple to get to a series locally.

• What is home study?   The home study course uses the same materials and covers the same topics as the classroom instructed course. Assistance, chart review, and counseling is provided by staff at CCL's central office in Cincinnati, Ohio.
• How long does it take?   Being self-directed, there is no specific timetable for course completion. However, an attentive couple doing one lesson a day should be able to cover all the material in three weeks.
• What does it cost?   The fee for the home study course is about the same as that for the in-class course plus shipping. (Since the cost may change, contact CCL's headquarters for the current cost.) This covers the materials (same as classroom course plus self-test questions), course review/advising from CCL central, and a one-year CCL membership. CCL membership entitles the couple to continued personal assistance, the right to re-take NFP courses or individual classes at no charge, and the League's bimonthly newsletter Family Foundations.
• Where can I get more information?   Contact a teaching couple (see above) or CCL central (see below), or see the CCL website.
• How do I order the course?   Contact the central office of the Couple to Couple League International.