The Public School Funded Homeschool Program

Say what?!?

I know....I know...this is really a confusing concept.  So here it is, an update on the program William attends.  To see my previous post on this program, click here.

Ok, so what exactly is a public school funded homeschool program?  Well, it's exactly like it sounds.  It's an "alternative" school in our local public school district.  They are funded just as every other public school is funded- with our hard earned tax dollars mmkay....Although, dare I say it...I feel that programs such as these are held to stricter standards then say, those for the high school dropouts.  But really, that's just my own opinion.

Many, many, many public school districts are now offering a program for homeschoolers.  If yours currently isn't- just you wait!  I bet you'll see one in the years to come as homeschooling gains in popularity.  Now, each program will vary depending on your school district.  We are fortunate to live near four different districts and so we've chosen the best homeschool program of the four local districts- Edmonds Heights K-12.

The other programs didn't offer actual classrooms but rather take home work, or they didn't have a campus but held classes all over the city and one was SO small it was stuck in a tiny room inside the school district's main office.  So when looking at homeschool programs- do your research!  Not all are created equal.


Now let's talk about Edmond's Heights K-12.


It's a large program, the largest I've come across.  The school campus uses an old high school in the town of Edmonds.  Y'all- Edmonds is seriously a beautiful city!  In the mornings when we pull up to "school" I can hear the nearby ferry boats and smell the salty ocean water- yeah, we are very blessed.

Edmonds, Wa

The school has a Principal, fully credited teachers, expert workshop instructors and families.  Lots and lots of beautiful homeschooling families of all races, cultures, sizes, social backgrounds and they travel from all over the area for the ability to attend this wonderful program.  There's a brand new playground that we raised money for just a few years ago.  There's an great arts program with full on musical productions and artist showcases.  We have a library, computer labs, co-ops, debate teams and more.  Folks- this place is simply awesome.  We're in love.


Sounds great, right?  Now- how does this all work?


Well, it's almost exactly like community college.  There's a building, staff, teachers etc- we've already covered all that.  But as far as the classes go, it mirrors the way college works.  You pick the classes you want to take each semester and we have 2 semesters per year.  The classes run on either a T/Th schedule or a M/W and there are no classes on Fridays.  It's like they knew that no one would want to be there on Fridays...genius!  The classes are broken up into grade levels and usually its 2 grades combined or 3 grades, for example, William has a Multiplication & Division class this Fall and it's for grades 4, 5 and 6.  This works well for kids that are both ahead of their grade level and behind their grade level.  The class size is also restricted depending on what the subject is- so usually 10 or 15 kids max.  Wow what a difference from a traditional public school classroom with 30 or 35 kids!

A typical class at EH

For us- since it's a 35-40 minute drive just to get there, I really try to limit our days that we are there.  So typically I try to arrange for all of William's classes to either fall on a T/Th or M/W.  Last year I got them all on a T/Th but so far, this Fall we will be attending on M/W.  It just depends on what the class schedules are and what's being offered.

**To see William's complete Fall schedule, click here.


So that's just a little bit about how our public school funded homeschool program works.  This program has been a huge benefit to us in our homeschooling journey.  William enjoys attending the classes and playing with his friends and I love meeting fellow homeschooling families.  It's been a good place for us and I would highly suggest you look into your local public school homeschool programs.  Don't be scerd mmkay...they really can be a wonderful thing!