How to Earn College Credit in High School
Earning college credit during high school is a great opportunity. The added coursework can be an exciting challenge and helps prepare students for college-level academics. And from a financial perspective, if successful, your student’s efforts can even help to reduce the total cost of post-secondary education. So, how can you…
If you want to raise test scores, students must plan for success
A lot of common suggestions for raising test scores focus on test preparation, getting a good night’s sleep before an exam, and eating a good breakfast before heading for the test. And while these are great and important suggestions, the key to raising test scores starts long before the exam…
Parental Involvement at PA Private Schools
If you’re one of the many Pennsylvania families newly-attending or considering a private school for your children’s education, you may be wondering how, as a parent, you can get involved. And while there are plenty of ways for parents to get practically involved in their child’s school, the very best…
Finding the Right College for Your Homeschool Student
Homeschoolers don’t have guidance counselors—but that’s ok Without a traditional guidance counselor to walk you through it, starting a college search as a homeschooler or cyber school student may seem daunting. But remember, embarking on your own college search is just as easy as learning on your own. By doing…
Heading to your local school board meeting? Start here
Do a quick online search for “tips for attending school board meetings,” and you’ll get quite a few hits. But before you jump in front of a mic or send off that email, let’s run through the basics of school boards so you know what you’re getting into. The…
Parents: It's Your Right to Know What Your Children are Being Taught
Kim is a mom from the Warwick School District. She and Warwick Parents for Change, a group of about 400 members, are fighting for parents’ voices to be heard on the school boards. Kim became especially passionate about curriculum after she discovered that students from kindergarten to 9th grade are…
Time to connect: How to find community while choosing to learn at home
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, over 11 percent of American students are now homeschooling. From the 2019-2020 school year to the 2020-2021 school year, alone, the number of homeschooling students doubled. Schooling at home is growing in popularity—and it seems the COVID-19 pandemic has only enhanced homeschooling’s curb…
Switching up Schools? Here Are Your Options
We’re all familiar with conventional district schools. Those signature yellow buses courier students to and from a full day of instruction in classrooms. Students follow a standard curriculum and sit for standardized state assessment tests fairly regularly. Most teachers belong to unions, the school board sets the times and dates…
Cyber School in Real Life
Thousands of new students enrolled in Pennsylvania’s cyber charter schools in response to the pandemic, but there is often skepticism toward such schools. Hannah Bowser attended cyber school her entire K-12 career. She shares her experience and tips for new cyber parents and students. A successful cyber school experience combines…
What is a microschool?
Like hybrid homeschooling and pandemic pods, the term microschool has entered the mainstream education conversation over the past year. There is not a set textbook definition for microschools, but they are often described as one-room schoolhouses for the modern world. Some have as few as 10 children; others might have…
Special Education Basics
Special education is a vast and complex topic. After the challenges of COVID and parents having a front-row seat to their children’s education, many parents have questions. We asked Heidi Goldsmith, a special education lawyer and mom of two children with special needs, to help us answer some common…
Looking for a summer learning boost?
For most children, the 2020-21 school year has been profoundly disruptive, with only a fraction of Pennsylvania students offered full, in-person instruction. As a homeschooling mom, I certainly don’t believe children need to be in a classroom all day in order to learn. Many parents, though, are understandably concerned that…
What You Should Know About Deadlines When Looking for a New School
If you’re considering a new school for your child or exploring options outside a traditional brick-and-mortar public school, what deadlines do you have to hit to keep your child on track? There are no hard and fast deadlines on a statewide basis. Admission to charter and private schools in Pennsylvania…