The Homeschooling Option: Lots of
Things to Consider During Pandemic

By Sandra Olmsted

The problems of managing COVID transmission and the beginning of the new school year has driven many parents to explore homeschooling, and the companies which provide homeschool curricula are swamped. I, consequently, reached out to several Facebook groups.
Michelle Bonebrake, the founder and administrator of St. Louis Area Secular Homeschoolers Facebook Group, not only allowed me to join the group but also volunteered to answer my questions and those of parents struggling with difficult decisions regarding this school year. She recommends, “those new to homeschooling look to well-established veteran companies for curriculum, goods, and services whenever possible,” and reach out to established groups for advice and read reviews online to find a curriculum that ‘will stand the test of time.”
First, some basics that anyone who is considering homeschooling should know, with this caveat this is only a general summary of homeschool laws in Missouri and is not legal advice.
1) Parents cannot just pull their students out of school and must notify the school district of changing to homeschooling. School districts also offer services and opportunities for homeschooled children, including services to meet some IEP needs.
2) Homeschool students are required to attend class for 1000 hours per year.
3) Subjects are specifically defined; however, there is flexibility in the requirements, and the parents are free to purchase or develop curriculums that suit their and their children’s particular needs.
The laws of every state vary, and Missouri readers should start with www.mo.gov/education/k-12/ to learn about specifically defined parental responsibilities and obligations regarding homeschooling.
According to Bonebrake, “religious” and secular curricula can vary greatly along a spectrum of beliefs; however, science and history curricula illustrate the differences; consequently, parents “should be aware of the differences so they can make the best choices for their family.” Members of her Facebook group “have used several wide-ranging curricula and can give specifics as to any religious references contained therein.”
In religious “science curricula, when discussing the origins of the universe, the emphasis is typically on Creationism. Such a curriculum may present” Biblical stories, such as, “Noah’s Ark as historical fact.” On the other hand, “neutral science curricula will usually either avoid the subject or present it essentially as, ‘some people believe in Creation, and some people believe in evolution.’ A fully secular science curriculum will, for example, present the Big Bang and theory of evolution as fact.”
According to Bonebrake, “Homeschool can be very challenging and definitely is not for everyone. There are a lot of right reasons and a lot of wrong reasons to homeschool. The homeschool community, for example, has the same issues as the public school community does with bullying, parents who are over-involved, parents who are under-involved, cliquishness, etc., so nobody should believe they are escaping all those issues by leaving a public school system.”
Through homeschooling groups, field trips, sports, and other activities are also available to homeschoolers, and
school districts often offer opportunities for learning and participation in school activities to homeschoolers.
In addition to teaching their students/children, many parents find it “daunting” to be “wholly and completely responsible” for their children’s education because it means any failure is on” them and “there is nobody else to blame”; however, parents can also take credit for “success.” With the support of other parents through social media and in-person groups, the fears of parents can be alleviated, and assistance can be found.
Bonebrake believes “that worrying is what makes us so good at teaching our kids. There is, after all, nobody in the entire world wants to see our kids succeed more than we do, and that very concern is what drives us to make it work.” This seems sage advice for all parents worrying about educations during the COVID pandemic.
Another piece of sound advice came when we discussed school as the babysitter for working parents. After expressing concern for parents forced to choose between working and keeping their children at home and for everyone making decisions they never expected to make, Bonebrake spoke about the resilience of children and the nature of public education.
“Kids are very resilient.” Bonebrake stated, “Even if we have a ‘lost semester’ without in-person instruction, students will bounce back. They might even show amazing growth if we as parents frame this situation in a way that allows for it.”
She also talked about the “harsh reality” of realizing that, while “public schools are obligated to educate children, there were never any guarantees that the education would be in-person. We never envisioned a time when it would be unsafe for kids to be physically present in school, so our expectations have always been that education happens at the school.”
Although she recognizes the value of brick-and-mortar education, Bonebrake believes it “is not quite as critical or relevant as it used to be” and “the face of education is changing” because technology allows for learning many concepts, often for free, online “without taking a class or going to a school.” Bonebrake, furthermore, stated, “Unfortunately, COVID has accelerated this phenomenon much faster than expected, which is uncomfortable for people who are finding themselves having to transition very suddenly from in-person learning to online learning.”
Bonebrake reassured, “We will get through this. I believe it is very difficult for any of us to envision a bright future during an uncertain present. We will work through this and, ideally, come out on the other side of COVID with a greater understanding of how education can be transformed to meet individual needs, whether in-person, online, or via hybrid models.”
Hopeful that changes in education will provide more options, Bonebrake stated, “As more families discover what is available outside of the brick-and-mortar classroom, we will see even more opportunities for virtual instruction for both public school families and homeschooling families.”

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