Virtual Schools??

[disneymarie]

To the schools defense..I had a very dependent special needs daughter. I was not fully aware of the issues at school because they kept telling me she was fine. my focus unfortuantely was about 75 percent on caring for a terminally ill child and relying on my family and friends to pick up with my other kids where I was not able to. When my youngest passed away, after two years of being sick, I decided to try this approach of school to reconnect with my kids and see if the one on one helped in any way.

QUOTE]

I am so sorry about the struggle and loss of your child. There is nothing words can say. I lost my dd 3 years ago after years of special needs. I stuggle now with the kids working through the years I was one on one with my dd injuries. The older children are well out of school, but still it has taken a toll.

The younger is 8th grade now, it is still a challange to get her to socialize and come out with peers. In fact it is near impossible. I want her to work up to a structured day of schooling, but with still having bad insomnia, and fear of her own passing, it is difficult. The siblings really do have a different life when a child in the family has special needs.

I am sending a hug, for you, and Angel that is always with us.
di

 

[Dsnymouse]

sbpebbles - Thanks for this post. It has opened my eyes. I have toyed with this for years and wondered if it would work well for my Dd. I looked at Connection Academy and it seems wonderful. My daughter has been in knots with the pressure our state puts on state testing and tells me she hates school. I wonder if something like this would turn her views around. I worry about socialization - has anyone done field trips with this school. I'm subscribing as I'd love to hear more...

 

[disneymarie]

sbpebbles - Thanks for this post. It has opened my eyes. I have toyed with this for years and wondered if it would work well for my Dd. I looked at Connection Academy and it seems wonderful. My daughter has been in knots with the pressure our state puts on state testing and tells me she hates school. I wonder if something like this would turn her views around. I worry about socialization - has anyone done field trips with this school. I'm subscribing as I'd love to hear more...

PA Connections here and there are multiple field trips a month, we have about 30 state wide. There is newspaper club, talent compatitions online submissions.
She would keep also her school friends and neighborhood friends too.

My dd had severe bullying and refuses to attend the many trips available. Still working on that. It is pretty severe where at 14 she wants to go to college online, be an online teacher...
SHe could not get into the building to do the PSSA's last year so again this year I am taking her to the office in our part of the state, less then a hour away.

There is a lot of tutoring support if needed. Office time like a college professor would offer, but online. There are phone calls to help too.
DD is doing her Live lessons now, and working on two labs.
Bye

 

[ohanaMAMA]

dsnymouse... You need to be aware though that MOST states require homeschooled students to take part in standardized tests.. especially the virtual charter schools. I know my dd has to attend two different test dates.

 

[sbpebbles]

Well looks like I'm going to attend the WCA open house on Thur..I figure I can always bring along DD's IEP and they can tell me if they can help or not cuz i did look at the DPI website and that just confuses me lol...the worst thing they can say is NO and we move on from there..

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

Another thumbs up for connections academy. We were in NVCA for two years and had a wonderful time. It's amazing how fast you can go through the lessons in a day. DD was a figure skater so the flexibilty of the scheduling was key for us, but also the more individualized instruction. With connections kids can spend more time on the subjects that they struggle with and breeze through the lessons that they grasp quickly. We took all the state mandated test. I spoke to her teacher on bi-weekly basis to make sure she was on track, but he was always just a webmail or a phone call away. Once when we were having a problem with a lesson he called me to set up a private one on one virtual lesson with her. We were sad to leave and DD wishes she could still be in NVCA but because of a change in work hours she hato return to a Brick and Mortar charter school. She's hoping to return to NVCA for high school....we'll see about that Good Luck!

 

[hildarumpole]

OMG my daughter would LOVE to take spanish..do they really offer it for 1st graders? she's always asking me how to say things in spanish and i only know the bare basics..do you know how long the information sessions take? I'm considering registering for the one tonight but I have to make an international call at 7, it's something I do every Monday..do you remember how long it took for the application to be approved? I'm starting to think maybe I got into this too late seeing as how we only have 4 more days left..thanks!

Yes, 1st graders can take Spanish. It's nice, because all of the lessons are online and the parent/learning coach doesn't need to know the language.

I can't remember how long it took for our application to get approved. Maybe a month??? It involved notifying our local public school and they had to give the o.k. before Connections Academy could accept my son's enrollment. Our school district didn't even contact us about it. You only have to file the application by the deadline, not have it approved.

ok so i did the online forum and it appears that WCA MIGHT not be a good fit for my dd since she does have the IEP and they can only accept certain IEPs so i might just attend the open house on Thur..boy oh boy am i cutting this close...

Here's a phone number at Connections Academy where you might be able to get more specific answers to your IEP questions: 1-800-382-6010. Good luck.

 

[disneymarie]

Well looks like I'm going to attend the WCA open house on Thur..I figure I can always bring along DD's IEP and they can tell me if they can help or not cuz i did look at the DPI website and that just confuses me lol...the worst thing they can say is NO and we move on from there..

Get the name of the WCA mom that referred you, your school gets an added bonus for the referral.
Glad the timing is working out for you.
I never even had them look at the IEP before enrollment, they understood her diagx.

Remember too, there will be an index of families, you can make you own times to get together for socilazation by attending field trips in your area and web mail each other. That is the in school mail service.
Good luck

 

[sbpebbles]

Yes, 1st graders can take Spanish. It's nice, because all of the lessons are online and the parent/learning coach doesn't need to know the language.

I can't remember how long it took for our application to get approved. Maybe a month??? It involved notifying our local public school and they had to give the o.k. before Connections Academy could accept my son's enrollment. Our school district didn't even contact us about it. You only have to file the application by the deadline, not have it approved.



Here's a phone number at Connections Academy where you might be able to get more specific answers to your IEP questions: 1-800-382-6010. Good luck.

Oh i like that..I am going to give them a call in a few min..if you want me to use your family as the referral please feel free to PM me your info..thanks again, you have been a wonderful help!

 

[cirquelovers]

Another Connections Academy family here, we're with ORCA. I think it's neat that there are so many of us on here!

I know we have quite a few opportunities for field trips and get togethers. I've been known to drive an hour or so if the field trip was a fun one!

Gota go correct some work now! Good luck with your decision and weigh all your options.

 

[sbpebbles]

well I took the plunge and made a call to the school directly and they said they thought they'd be able to work with my daughter's IEP but couldn't tell me for sure, it's gotta be reviewed by the Special Education dept at the school so I went ahead and applied for Open Enrollment..got our fingers crossed that she gets approved..we won't know anything til April 9th..I have not told her current school so I'm sure there's gonna be some shell shock there..my parents don't even support me enrolling her but they keep telling me to do what I feel is best (we currently reside with them) and I honestly feel like this would be a good fit for her..I'm just concerned if we move outta this school district--i guess here in WI that can created issues for open enrollment but we have officially applied for Enrollment in WCA, hoping to be the next WCA family thanks again everyone, you all have been so very wonderful!

 

[Zookeeperof4]

dsnymouse... You need to be aware though that MOST states require homeschooled students to take part in standardized tests.. especially the virtual charter schools. I know my dd has to attend two different test dates.

I am very glad you pointed this out. In Pa it is mandatory that your child take the Pssa's. You are given dates where you can take your kids throughout the state and its up to you to go there. if you miss it is just means you will have to travel further if there is not a closer testing site to make it up. Our site we go to is a local community college..and by local its a 45 min drive one way. They have to go two or more days consecutively....depending on age. Once you are in I think 4th grade and up they add Science to the math and reading parts. They stay all day with other kids at the site. You can stay if you choose but you are not permitted to be in the testing areas.
I think all kids have that state testing anxiety...who wants to test for a whole day????

 

[mickeylove2]

subbing, I would love to get more info on virtual/home schooling!

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

subbing, I would love to get more info on virtual/home schooling!

www.connectionsacademy.com

 

[disneymarie]

I am very glad you pointed this out. In Pa it is mandatory that your child take the Pssa's. You are given dates where you can take your kids throughout the state and its up to you to go there. if you miss it is just means you will have to travel further if there is not a closer testing site to make it up. Our site we go to is a local community college..and by local its a 45 min drive one way. They have to go two or more days consecutively....depending on age. Once you are in I think 4th grade and up they add Science to the math and reading parts. They stay all day with other kids at the site. You can stay if you choose but you are not permitted to be in the testing areas.
I think all kids have that state testing anxiety...who wants to test for a whole day????

Our PA connections test for 1/2 days, the younger kids in the AM and older one afternoon. They test two days.
But, the kids in I think it is 5th and 8th, not sure about 11th are also taking the science and history,. Otherwise it is math and language.

Ours are in April, but dd has such anxiety not only with testing but the crowds, kids intimidate her that I drive her to the nearest office and a teacher administers the test We have 3 test dates and she will have 1 full day.
This is a challange, and I am so hoping she does not break down again this year. It took two attemps to get her there.

I do see some improvement where she sees one friend, but is not good at all if they include a second friend especially one she does not know.

With being school phobic too schooling is a stess every day. I am glad the recordings are recorded so she can take it at her pace Her IQ is excellerate, but her social skills are even worse then when I was her age. She panics over everything, especially her health.

 

[mickeylove2]

www.connectionsacademy.com

Oh wow, that looks like a great way to school my children, unfortunately it doesn't look like they are supported in MD Thanks for the link though.

 

[hildarumpole]

Oh wow, that looks like a great way to school my children, unfortunately it doesn't look like they are supported in MD Thanks for the link though.

The Connections Academy headquarters is in Baltimore. It's strange that MD doesn't offer it. You could contact them and ask if it could be offered in your state.

 

[livie1205]

my ds13 is in FVS (florida virtual school)...he is still tech in the school system here but he just does his work at home.He has some medical problems and was falling behind but he loves the FVS and is doing much better! His teachers call him once a week and he can call them if he has a problem.I should have done it years ago!

 

[beachgrl001]

My friends Daughter does virtual school. She is 16 and just got accepted int a state college pre-med program she is graduating early

 

[taximomfor4]

considering this option for one of my kids. In my state, it looks like they are only taking enrollment till 3/12 so I am getting VERY Close to the cutoff. Chances are, we won't be sending dd back to school at all (long story, in another thread) if we don't have to. How long does the enrollment process take? If I start enrollment on Monday (3/8), and it takes a month, what am I going to do?! DH Is wishy washy on this whole idea, so I told him the deadline and have to wait for him to make his choice. I've made mine, as has dd11.