One of the biggest changes that the Covid-19 pandemic has brought is changes to the way our kids are educated. Most students spent all day at school, in a classroom, surrounded by other students, and with a teacher leading their learning. As schools around the country shut down, parents were forced into a variety of distance-learning situations; trying to keep on top of their children’s learning while juggling their own work responsibilities on top of everyone’s stress of these sudden changes. So my first tip is to give yourself permission to be stressed and uncertain. You are dealing with a lot! Over the next few weeks we’ll talk about different tips for schooling at home to help boost your confidence and reduce the stress.
Let’s start with the difference between homeschooling and “distance learning” or “schooling at home”, which is what most of the country is now doing. The biggest difference between what is happening with most families and with true homeschooling, is that homeschooling families consciously chose to homeschool typically after a lot of research and planning versus the very sudden, unplanned, and forced distance learning situation. Another big difference between distance learning and true homeschooling is that, generally speaking, homeschoolers make all the decisions related to their children’s education, whereas with distance learning through your school district you are following what the school has instructed.
As your school district decides their plan for the coming year and as you try to figure out what you want to do, the first question will be: Do I want to follow my school district’s distance learning plan or do I want to actually homeschool my children? As you are pondering this question, take a look at what the rules are for homeschooling in your state as each state has different regulations. You can also join the discussion on this Facebook group started by a fellow veteran homeschool mom to help other PWS families or sign up for this online Special Needs Homeschooling Conference launching on July 21st.
Check back next week when we tackle “But I’m not a Teacher, How Can I Teach My Children?”
Future posts:
- But I’m not a Teacher, how can I teach my children?
- How do I get services if I homeschool?
- How to pick curriculum: what to use, where to get, how to implement?
- What does a typical homeschooling day look like?
- How can I work and manage my child’s education?
Contributed by Julie Casey
Jennifer Bolander has been serving as a Special Education Specialist for PWSA (USA) since October of 2015. She is a graduate of John Carroll University and lives in Ohio with her husband Brad and daughters Kate (17), and Sophia (13) who was born with PWS.
Perry A. Zirkel has written more than 1,500 publications on various aspects of school law, with an emphasis on legal issues in special education. He writes a regular column for NAESP’s Principal magazine and NASP’s Communiqué newsletter, and he did so previously for Phi Delta Kappan and Teaching Exceptional Children.
Evan has worked with the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) since 2007 primarily as a Crisis Intervention and Family Support Counselor. Evans works with parents and schools to foster strong collaborative relationships and appropriate educational environments for students with PWS.
Dr. Amy McTighe is the PWS Program Manager and Inpatient Teacher at the Center for Prader-Willi Syndrome at the Children’s Institute of Pittsburgh. She graduated from Duquesne University receiving her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Education with a focus on elementary education, special education, and language arts.
Staci Zimmerman works for Prader-Willi Syndrome Association of Colorado as an Individualized Education Program (IEP) consultant. Staci collaborates with the PWS multi-disciplinary clinic at the Children’s Hospital in Denver supporting families and school districts around the United States with their child’s Individual Educational Plan.
Founded in 2001, SDLC is a non-profit legal services organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the legal rights of people with disabilities throughout the South. It partners with the Southern Poverty Law Center, Protection and Advocacy (P&A) programs, Legal Services Corporations (LSC) and disability organizations on major, systemic disability rights issues involving the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the federal Medicaid Act. Recently in November 2014, Jim retired.