What motivated Lucinda's cat, Clyde to roam their
neighborhood at night and collect stuff? Lucinda was shocked when she saw his
hoard in the garden shed and knew she had to do something about it
Okay so you've been homeschooling your son or daughter and your child decides that he or she wants to try regular school. They may be wanting to try new activities or make some new friends. Maybe your work schedule has changed or you are no longer happy with the cyber schooling options. Now you are faced with a whole new problem, and that is how do you select the right school for your child? There are a lot of factors to consider. First of all you need to know what your school zone is and what the laws are in your area. In most cases, parents have the right to appeal a school decision not to accept a child because of zoning or residential location. You may also have the right to choose a charter school, religious based school, private school or you may have to select from several public schools. If you are looking for a great resource on selecting the right school for your child, then consider the following ebook. The author is offering it for only two dollars and it can save you a lot of time and headaches in the long run. Simply click the link below if you are interested!
Schooling Selection Strategies 
Did you know that over the summer vacation, nearly a quarter of the
knowledge gained throughout the school year is lost? Thus the need for
repeated material early in the school year. The biggest gaps are usually
in math and reading. However an easy way to help retain some of that
precious knowledge is getting your kids to read at least one chapter
book over the summer. We find that tablet readers are an excellent way
to do this. We even found a great book this year that is new and pretty
much unknown. It is called The Haunted Lighthouse by author Kathryn
Kaye. We picked it up on Kindle during the free promotion and were
actually surprised by how good it was. The story is appropriate for kids
but exciting enough for teens and even adults to enjoy. The reading
level is about middle school give or take. It is not too long or too
short and the characters are really rich and the story is wonderful. I
highly recommend it or any of the other fabulous books on Kindle, Nook,
Kobo, Google Books, etc. Most are reasonably priced and great for kids.
Side note though, the same author that I just mentioned has another book
called True Tales of Ghostly Experiences, The Ghost Family of
Pennsylvania. That one is NOT intended for children and it may be a bit scary. It is a good read for adults though!
This year has brought a lot of cyber school changes that have proved difficult for many families. For example several online schools now require the children to attend live sessions with a certified teacher in addition to completing their lessons and assignments. The benefit of this is that the children get the chance to work with a teacher who can assist their understanding and check to make sure that they are grasping the material and making progress. This also gives the children a chance to work with the other students and make friends with their classmates. The big drawback however is that making this required rather than optional is creating a problem for families who do not do school work during those hours. I interviewed one mother who said that she works as a nurse and her schedule varies so much that it was a deciding factor in homeschooling her daughter. She felt that providing education at home would give her the flexibility she needed with work. However now that her daughter has to be online at certain times, she is no longer able to get the hours she needs at work or she has to hire a babysitter who may not be able to handle her daughter's lessons during class time. Another major issue is that most cyber school require in person assessments several times a year. I spoke with a family recently who said that they were told only two days before one of these assessments and they had to drive nearly three hours to the testing site. When they got there their child had to wait another two hours until it was his turn to do the assessment. These are just some of the major challenges that parents are facing this year. In light of these recent events the Home School Cyber School Alliance is working to provide an advocacy service where they will act as a neutral mediator between schools and parents to work through these solutions and find solutions that benefit all parties involved.
Whether you are a new student to cyber school education or an old pro there are a few things you need to do to prepare for the all important first day of school. First off make sure that you have a copy of your school's schedule including the start date, vacation days and exam information if it is available. These things can often be confusing as most cyber schools allow students to work ahead giving them access to lessons before school and during vacation times. This gives the appearance of a regular school day but you will not be allowed to enter attendance. Knowing ahead of time when exam dates are is an advantage for parents who need to arrange their schedules. Also you need to get to know your school's policies including attendance, etiquette and lesson completion. For example some school require that students work with a teacher online in addition to completing their daily plan, while others are more flexible in this area. Remember to take your time and work through each lesson. It may seem overwhelming at first but you can do it. If you get stuck you can contact your teachers for help or feel free to contact the Home School Cyber School Alliance. We offer professional online tutoring for both students and parents for only $5.00 per hour as opposed to the $20 to $50 that for profit companies charge. As a nonprofit our fees only go to help cover operating costs. We do this simply to benefit the students.
OK the school year is getting ready to start and many new families to the world of online education may be a tad bit overwhelmed, particularly if you are using public online schools. The amount of work your child is expected to accomplish each day can be a lot but it will really help your child to blossom academically. So here are some tips for success in each subject.
1. Make sure you are completing all of the lessons in your daily plan each day or you will fall behind.
2. If you are having trouble keeping up consider doing a couple hours of work on the weekends. You cannot add attendance but you can work on your child's lessons.
3. Start early to get ahead. Many families choose to start their child's lessons before the official start of school, again you cannot add attendance but getting a head start really helps for harder days, days that you are falling behind or to lesson the required work load.
4. Plan your subjects like a teacher. The K12 program is excellent at guiding you through each step but if you do your subject in a specific way your child will learn the routine and it will become easier as you go.
For example:
Math Class Third Grade
10 minute skill review (ie math facts, or practice from previous lesson)
30 minutes instructional period (the K12 online portion or an explanation and examples from you)
20 minutes independent study (this is the time for your child to work on her own, completing assignments, doing worksheets or practice exercises.)
Keep organized and stay calm. Take on one subject at a time and if yo or your child start to get overwhelmed, take a break. Physical activity or playtime is a great way to refresh. Think of it as recess. As always if you need help the staff at the Home School Cyber School Alliance offer low cost ($5 per hour or less!) tutoring to both students and parents!
http://homeschoolcyberschoolalliance.org
1. Make sure you are completing all of the lessons in your daily plan each day or you will fall behind.
2. If you are having trouble keeping up consider doing a couple hours of work on the weekends. You cannot add attendance but you can work on your child's lessons.
3. Start early to get ahead. Many families choose to start their child's lessons before the official start of school, again you cannot add attendance but getting a head start really helps for harder days, days that you are falling behind or to lesson the required work load.
4. Plan your subjects like a teacher. The K12 program is excellent at guiding you through each step but if you do your subject in a specific way your child will learn the routine and it will become easier as you go.
For example:
Math Class Third Grade
10 minute skill review (ie math facts, or practice from previous lesson)
30 minutes instructional period (the K12 online portion or an explanation and examples from you)
20 minutes independent study (this is the time for your child to work on her own, completing assignments, doing worksheets or practice exercises.)
Keep organized and stay calm. Take on one subject at a time and if yo or your child start to get overwhelmed, take a break. Physical activity or playtime is a great way to refresh. Think of it as recess. As always if you need help the staff at the Home School Cyber School Alliance offer low cost ($5 per hour or less!) tutoring to both students and parents!
http://homeschoolcyberschoolalliance.org
As the start of the new school year approaches, it is time to start planning your child's schedule. Remember that homeschooling offers great flexibility but if you have chosen a cyber school option your child may have scheduled classes online with a teacher. Also many cyber schools require that the students log on by a certain time each day. Make sure your schedule meets these requirements and be prepared to adjust as necessary once school begins. Some tips for a successful school schedule include being consistent, planning around your families needs and taking your child's needs into consideration. If your child hates math but loves art, schedule them back to back so your child can be rewarded with a topic he or she enjoys. Don't forget recess. A break for physical activity can do wonderous for subjects later in the day. Also keep organized as this will help you more than you know. If you need any help setting up your schedule please visit http:/homeschoolcyberschoolalliance.org. We will be happy to assist you!
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