Homeschool and options for online school in Ohio

With the uncertainty of how the school year will look, and the work conflicts that parent are facing, many families are considering homeschooling, or enrolling with an established virtual learning academy. These options have been available to families for years, and will allow students to have consistency of schedule and educational style. We are adding some options and resources for families to decide what is right for them. 

It’s vital that families ensure that students social, emotional, and learning needs and requirements are being met, and to reassess school plans each year for each child, no matter what schooling option is chosen. It’s not unusual for one sibling to attend public school while another is home schooling or in online school, or for students to homeschool/virtual school some years and not others.

Disclaimer: we are not recommending one choice over any other, nor are we suggesting you choose an option outside of your school district. This is an incredibly hard option, and no parent should be made to feel like they are making the wrong choice. As long as you are ensuring your children are receiving an approved education, you are doing just fine. Do what is right for you and your children.

Home Schooling in Ohio

Parents have the option of removing their children from public school and facilitating their schooling at home. Parents or guardians are responsible for choosing the curriculum, course of study, and meeting the state requirements for the education. There is no state financial assistance for families who choose this option. Parent or guardian must have a high school education or the equivalent to be permitted to facilitate home schooling. 

Families choose this option for a variety of reasons, and while it’s flexible, its not necessarily easy. You can’t just pull your kids from school and figure out a plan later. There is a specific process and requirements that you must follow to start homeschooling within a week of withdrawing from a school district. 

• Requires 900 hours of instruction per year with specific subjects covered
• Must provide a brief outline of the curriculum for the current school year
• Provide a list of textbooks, correspondence courses, commercial curricula or other basic teaching materials that you plan to use
• Notify the superintendent every year; and
• Provide an assessment of the students work, this link will provide the O.R.C. requirement. 

Home school students can participate in extracurricular activities in public schools of the school districts where they reside. This includes any student programs run by a school that is not included in curriculum. Students still need to meet the same nonacademic and financial requirements as any other student participating in the activity. Fees and ability in sports, where there are cuts, apply.

Families are responsible for choosing the schedule and methods that work well for them. This makes it easier to plan around work schedules, interests, and student needs. But there is a lot of responsibility on the parents and students to make sure they are following a plan and furthering their education. This choice shouldn’t be made only because it seems “easiest”. 

There are home school resources, groups, co-ops, tutors, curriculum, and more available all over. If you are looking for guidance and other families with experience at homeschooling, search “homeschooling in {insert local area or school district}”. You should also ask friends and family if they know of other homeschool families in the area. Most parents with experience at home schooling are more than happy to share tips and guidance. 

For full details, requirements, and restrictions of home schooling in Ohio, see the Ohio Department of Education website for guidance.

Virtual At-home School facilitated through your local school district

In 2020, most public schools where offering a virtual, at-home learning option for students. The schools will provide and facilitate the curriculum, schedule, and testing, just as they would if the student was taking classes AT school. This is going to look very different for all districts, and will likely vary between grades as well. It’s possible that at any point during the 20/21 school year, all students will need to switch to virtual schooling either temporarily or for the remainder of the school year. 

The pro of picking the virtual learning through your school district is that students will have consistency from the start of the school year without having to change schedule, locations, or platforms. The con is that no one knows what this will look like until specific plans are released. Most schools are requiring families to stick with this option for a semester before switching to in-school options.

Public Online School in Ohio

The following online schools are open to all students in Ohio for general education of grades K-12. These are public schools for the State of Ohio. They are free to attend, and the curriculum and testing is chosen and facilitated by the virtual school. Students will have school at home, but parents won’t be responsible for providing the education.

A licensed Ohio teacher provides the appropriate grade-level instruction. When enrolled in public online school, the student receives a computer and educational materials, and online access to the school. Students can participate in extracurricular activities in public schools of the school districts where they reside. This includes any student programs run by a school that is not included in curriculum. As these are public schools, state mandated tests will be required to be completed and will be arranged by the e-school. Students graduating from an Ohio online school receive an Ohio high school diploma as all other public school students.

There are enrollment caps for these Ohio E-Schools, so enrollment may fill up at any time. There may be other options available; these were the options on the Ohio Department of Education E-School List for public schooling.

OHDELA- The Ohio Distance and Electronic Learning Academy (Alternative Education Academy). August 24, 2020 – June 3, 2021.

From the website: Students can engage with other students, take part in school-wide activities, receive one-on-one attention from teachers, and have access to the tools they need to excel. Student attendance is required on ALL official school days. Students are required to log in DAILY in order to be considered present or show up in person to assigned testing location. Typical day may include live class session, breakout group activity, responding by a deadline to discussion questions posted by the teacher, completing and sending (by a deadline) an assignment to be graded by the teacher, and completing an assignment by deadline in a work group comprised of four or five classmates. 

See website for details and enrollment: https://ohdela.com/

Buckeye On-Line School for Success (BOSS) August 17, 2020 – May 28, 2021

From the website: The typical school day has a minimum of 5 hours of instruction. Students may have to complete homework, may sign up for field trips, or elect to watch previously recorded classes which will consume additional time. Virtual classes meet daily at regularly scheduled times and assignments are given due dates by the teacher. Students are required to log attendance and complete five hours of work every school day on their computer.

See website for details and enrollment: https://go2boss.com/

Great River Connections Academy  August 24, 2020 – May 28, 2021

From the website: Great River Connections Academy (GRCA) students are required by the Ohio Department of Education to work 920 hours during a full school year.* To meet this requirement, students must work 5.5 hours and complete 4–6 self-guided lessons each school day (the number of lessons is based on the student’s current grade-level requirements), for a total of 27.5 hours and the completion of 20–25 self-guided lessons each week. GRCA students are able to work any day of the week (Saturdays and Sundays included) and during the hours that work best for them. Parents/Learning Coaches will record all online and offline hours for their students when they are working on their daily self-guided lessons through Connexus® While this is separate from Ohio Connections Academy (see below), they use the same curriculum and program.

See website for details and enrollment: https://www.connectionsacademy.com/ohio-virtual-school

Ohio Connections Academy. 2020–21 School Year: August 17, 2020 – May 21, 2021.

From the website: Ohio Connections Academy (OCA) students are required by the Ohio Department of Education to work 920 hours during a full school year.* To meet this requirement, students must work 5.5 hours and complete 4–6 self-guided lessons each school day (the number of lessons is based on the student’s current grade-level requirements), for a total of 27.5 hours and the completion of 20–25 self-guided lessons each week. OCA students are able to work any day of the week (Saturdays and Sundays included) and during the hours that work best for them. Parents/Learning Coaches will record all online and offline hours for their students when they are working on their daily self-guided lessons through Connexus®

See website for details and enrollment: https://www.connectionsacademy.com/ohio-eschool

Ohio Virtual Academy August 24, 2020 – June 2, 2021

From the website: The K12 curriculum is individualized. In cooperation with the guidance of trained educators, our K-8 program is self-paced and flexible within the parameters specified by state law. Our online high school program is a combination of self-paced work and scheduled lessons and activities. We expect that students will spend no more than 20-25 percent of their time on the computer in the early grades. We use a unique multimedia approach that also includes a great deal of well-written and designed textbooks, workbooks, and hands-on instructional materials. Students are invited to participate in school outings, field trips (e.g., to historical sites, museums, zoos), picnics, and other social events

See website for details and enrollment: https://ohva.k12.com/

Again, this is not an exhaustive list of options; it’s a simple guide for schooling options for this difficult year. It’s important to do what’s right for your family as we go through these unknown times with school. Most kids are so resilient and will handle these changes easier than grown-ups do. 

If you have any resources or experiences with the above options, please share in the comments to help other readers. 

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