hen the Covid-19 outbreak began, the school year was nearing it's end. It’s safe to assume nobody expected the pandemic to still be affecting our world to the extent it is. Most parents expected to be back at the office with their children back in school come September. Well, it's halfway through August and as several countries are still mapping out what the 2020/2021 school year looks like, a small but quickly growing number of parents are taking matters entirely into their own hands and beginning homeschooling.
The Concern
Where do we even begin. The Coronavirus pandemic has sparked fear in a lot of us for a number of reasons, but an entire space full of children of all ages, teachers, and other staff truly sounds like a perfect recipe for the pandemic to thrive on. At this point in time, parents hold fear for two reasons when it comes to sending children back to the classroom.
- Some are worried their school districts are unable to offer a strong enough virtual learning program. Schooling has rarely been a virtual means of learning in the past, especially for the young bucks. Some kids have a hard enough time focusing in person, let alone staring at a screen for most of their day.
- For others, concerns for their family's health amid the coronavirus are leading them to part ways with school systems.
The Environment
If schools are to take children back into the classroom this fall, things will be completely different and that’s just something we’re going to have to adapt to. Kids will have to wear a mask to school everyday. Gym or recess will be entirely different. Sharing things among classmates will have a new meaning to it.
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Homeschooling Statistics
- There were approximately 2.5 million homeschool students last year in grades K-12 in the U.S., making up about 3% to 4% of school-age children, These numbers are projected to increase by at least 10% due to the pandemic.
- The National HomeSchool Association received more than 3,400 requests for information on a single day last month.
