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Some West Michigan parents choose to homeschool kids for 20-21 school year

Even with online-learning options through their district, some parents are opting to become the teachers themselves.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — As many school districts are working out their plans for the 2020-21 school year, some parents are making a change. 

"Do I send my first grader to school, where school might end up getting shut down, and then we do the distance learning again?" said Jessica DeYoung, a mother of two, "Or do I keep him home?"

DeYoung decided to homeschool her first grade son for the upcoming school year. She has never taught her children like this before, but felt more comfortable with that option than sending them physically to school or using online-learning provided by the district. 

Her homeschool plan, however, is temporary. She still hopes to send her kids to school next year, if she feels it is safe. 

One major factor in this decision was the amount of screen time online-learning requires. She said her family tries to limit that time for the children. 

RELATED: School districts face challenges as they plan for Fall semester

"Last year with distance learning in the Spring, we struggled with Zoom calls," said DeYoung, "My son would get maybe half way through a half hour Zoom call with his class and lose interest. He would get up and do something else. So, I think with younger kids, 100% online might be challenging."

DeYoung said she spent a lot of time researching homeschool materials and support. In doing so, she found many parents like herself who plan to teach at home this year. Thus, she created a Facebook group community so new homeschool teachers can work through the challenge together.

"Parents who want to keep our families safe, and figuring out the best solution for us," said DeYoung, "I don’t know if anyone in the group planned on homeschooling before. I think the majority of the group are planning on sending our kids back to school when we feel its safe for our children."

Other parents are searching for options like hiring teachers or tutors for their kids. Jeannie Dauber is an adjunct instructor teaching physical science at Grand Rapids Community College and a former high school teacher. She is offering her virtual teaching services for parents and kids who are navigating through this time. 

"I have about three or four people that are very interested in not only individual tutoring or instruction, but also in a group," said Dauber, "Getting some kids, their friends and people in their academic aptitude to go in this together."

Dauber said she had to move her GRCC classes online since March, and has learned how to navigate virtual teaching. She has a few options for parents and students who are working on learning at home, whether homeschooling or in need of supplemental help for an online-learning program through their school.

Her specialty is math and science courses. One reason some parents may be hesitant to homeschool is that they lack familiarity with those subjects to teach. Alternately, some of the students she teaches are looking for an extra focus on a subject they are excelling in. 

"My heart goes out to the single parents who work full-time, who may have to figure out how to educate their kids," said Dauber,  "I don't think that everyone responds the same way to online instruction. So you have to be innovative in how you're going to present the material."

RELATED: Michigan Education Association hopes for some flexibility with Count Day

Parents who have homeschooled their children for years said they are hearing more and more parents asking questions about doing it themselves this year. Diane Hehman has been a homeschool mom for 15 years, and is an admin in a few Facebook support groups. 

"They're concerned about kids wearing masks, not having recess, and all those things that are valid points," said Hehman, "But they need to know what their options are. And so they're coming to the homeschool community to try to find that out."

She offered some tips to new homeschool teachers. One, find a support community. Hehman said parents lose out on socialization from being in a classroom just as much as students do. Also, prepare the student for a change in curriculum, as not all homeschool programs follow the Common Core. 

"I love the flexibility of it," said Hehman, "I love that I can slow down or speed up the curriculum and the education for my kids."

She said the COVID-19 crisis and stay-at-home order also affected homeschool parents and students, and the online-learning program that was put in place in the Spring was not the same as it will be this Fall. 

"What we were facing in March was different because there wasn't homeschooling, there wasn't public schooling, private schooling, it was crisis schooling," said Hehman. "It looked different for all of us, even for us as homeschoolers, because we don't necessarily stay home. We have a lot of co-ops and different things that we do."

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DeYoung said she hopes there is a safe plan in schools, or there is a vaccine available so she can send her kids to school for the 2021-22 school year. She said the plan to homeschool is viewed as temporary, but that is flexible as the pandemic continues. 

"We love our school, we love the Hudsonville school district and feel very supported by them and all the programs they offer to families," said DeYoung, "It was never our long-term plan to homeschool. We are looking forward to sending our kids back to school when we feel safe."

RELATED VIDEO: What will schooling look like in the Fall? 


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