Making the Mid-Year Switch to Homeschooling

Life events can be stressful, especially for children. Switching schools is one of those life events. As is completely changing the way your child receives an education–even more so when that change occurs halfway through a school year. This is how many families feel when they leave traditional public schools behind in favor of homeschooling. Especially when they’re homeschooling for the first time. Just know, however, that you can do it. In fact, making the mid-year switch to homeschooling with Bridgeway Academy is actually quite easy!

Why Families Are Making the Move to Homeschooling

There are quite a few reasons parents have decided they’ve had enough with the public school system. Enough so that more and more are removing their children from school in the middle of the school year. But there are better elementary school options, better middle school options, and better high school options. Homeschooling. These are a few of the main reasons parents are switching to homeschooling.

• Safety: Between school shootings, violent school environments, and post-pandemic health concerns, many parents just don’t want to send their children to public schools. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (IES), up to 25% of parents listed safe environment concerns as the major reason for homeschooling.
• Cultural beliefs and representations: Some Americans oppose what they consider the revision of history; others feel under-represented within the context of American history. Neither side wants their children to learn what schools are teaching, and parents are removing their children for these reasons.
• Bullying: According to studies conducted in 2017 and 2019, approximately 20% of children between ages 12 and 18 in the United States encounter bullying. This distressing issue leaves parents feeling powerless and devastated upon discovering that their child is being victimized at school. Consequently, they are taking immediate action by withdrawing their student from this harmful environment.
• General discontent with schools: Traditional schools rely heavily on standardized testing, large class sizes, and a one-size-fits-all approach to education. This is a major source of frustration for parents and especially students, who learn at different paces and in different ways.

Homeschooling provides the ultimate solution for overcoming these challenges. It empowers parents to have complete authority over their child’s education, including the content, methods, and frequency of learning. The greatest advantage of homeschooling is its flexibility, allowing parents to personalize the curriculum based on their child’s strengths and requirements. Homeschooling families can also create a schedule that works for everyone in the house and enables the child to explore and achieve the success they deserve. When choosing a homeschool, it is vital to consider several important factors. (Hint: Bridgeway Academy meets all these requirements!)

Important Considerations

When you’re ready to begin your search for the right homeschool, there are quite a few important factors to consider.

• Usage of learning styles: One-size-fits-all education does not exist when you homeschool, which is one of the many benefits. To truly customize your child’s education to the way he or she learns best, Bridgeway Academy has developed a learning and personality style assessment that allows us to tailor the curriculum to your child’s unique strengths and challenges to set them up for academic success.
• Grade-level flexibility: In line with the previous point, your child is truly unique. That is why we carry out thorough assessments to determine their areas of strength and areas where they may need additional support. Instead of assigning a specific grade level, we customize each program to focus on their needs and enhance their abilities. This is something that many other online schools and homeschooling academies are not capable of doing.
• Comfort: When you homeschool your child, you’re able to protect them from outside influences and concerns, such as school violence, bullying, drugs and alcohol, and even illness. If your student experienced any of those in traditional school, your decision to homeschool offers them safety and comfort. And that allows them to focus solely on their schoolwork.
• Choice of curriculum: Forget about the politics and the agendas of some traditional schools–when you homeschool, you (the parents!) decide what your child learns and when they learn it. Homeschooling allows you to choose from homeschool curriculums and publishers to create a truly customized course of study.
• Accreditation: Accreditation shows that homeschool academies prioritize the excellence of the instruction they offer by undergoing yearly evaluations of their enrollment procedures, staff credentials, learning materials, resource distribution, program efficacy, and other factors. It demonstrates that an organization is consistently striving to enhance its excellence. It also shows a track record of dependability and credibility. Bridgeway Academy holds the status of a diploma-granting establishment endorsed by the Pennsylvania State Department of Education and accredited by Cognia.
• Support: When you make the mid-year switch to homeschooling, you’re going to need support. Even the most experienced homeschoolers need support throughout the school year. Our academic advisors are compassionate and passionate about education. They are experienced teachers and former homeschoolers who can relate to the difficulties and joys of homeschooling. And they are always available through email and phone to assist you with any questions and offer helpful homeschooling suggestions and strategies.

How Bridgeway Academy Can Help

We have provided you with a wealth of information to consider, which is beneficial when it comes to homeschooling. Especially if you’re considering transitioning in the middle of the academic year. Now that you know what to look for in a homeschool, download our whitepaper, How to Successfully Make the Switch to Homeschooling Mid-Year. It offers more information about switching to homeschooling during the school year and how Bridgeway Academy makes it easy. It also includes a checklist that takes you step by step through the process.

Don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions you may have about making the mid-year switch to homeschooling. Call us at (800) 863-1474 today!