K-12 Education alternatives in times of crisis (updated March 25th)

As we write this article the Governor of Washington State has canceled all K-12 classes/schools effective immediately through April 24th (which means Monday April 27th would be the first day back at school). That’s 6 weeks or ~30 school days.

Whether one agrees with the decision or not it’s a done and we need to deal with the consequences. To that end we will keep this article front-and-center for the duration in a hope that the information shared will be useful.

It’s clear that neither OSPI’s Superintendent of Schools Chris Reykdal nor the Governor nor School Board nor School Districts have any contingency plans for continuing education during times of crisis. Lots of planning and money have gone into things like Common Core testing (SBAc); S.E.L. (Social Emotional Learning); PBIS; CSE (Comprehensive Sex Education) and other social programs…BUT…not the core job of delivering education. When this current turmoil has passed parents must demand that those in leadership develop plans to deal with this type of situation in the future.

As you get information about your local situation if you want to share it we will add to this article. We’ll take information for any area of the State.

If you have information you want to add please email us via this blog site or at swweducation at gmail.com

Implications?

Lack of free breakfast/lunch
Lack of medical services (in districts that provide them now)
Daycare will be required by many with what resources (time and money)?
Common Core testing (SBAc) normally occurs March – May and will be disrupted
Lack of education for the duration

We’ll focus on the education side since that’s the only thing we can attempt to deal with. What resources may be available for parents who want to their children to continue and not sit around waiting for school to restart?

OSPI’s website has a list of “approved” online schools and school programs you may want to look at: https://www.k12.wa.us/student-success/learning-alternatives/online-learning/approved-online-schools-and-school-programs
Washington Connections Academy: https://www.connectionsacademy.com/washington-online-school/about
Washington Virtual Academies: https://wava.k12.com/how-it-works/k-8.html
Washington Home School Organization: https://washhomeschool.org/
Time 4 Learning: https://www.time4learning.com/homeschooling/washington/
Seattle Homeschool Group: https://seattlehomeschoolgroup.org/
Firmly Planted Family: https://www.fphrc.org/
Home School Groups in Washington State: https://www.home-school.com/groups/WA.php
Khan Academy: https://www.khanacademy.org/?fbclid=IwAR0-BlTF7rFZ_UikVs4_tHyRhHkxScm2CrTBOYnXogKAxtJGM5jyiOO1H_c
Evergreen SD offers links to learning resources: https://sites.google.com/evergreenps.org/home-learning-resources/home?fbclid=IwAR0bO6ghOXMMhG3G0X2VTnae18Aaz2qEGo21wq3A8G8blElkcBPstrYIcIk
Freedom Project Academy has been recommended: https://www.fpeusa.org/?fbclid=IwAR1F0PGeauiHO1UG_V4rIrQ8p_MTtPPP4fvSMsJWGb57Uf-VYneklNBSPKA

Articles that may be of use and interest:

https://suepatterson.com/blogs/news/coronavirus-turned-us-into-homeschoolers-now-what?fbclid=IwAR1vLOSAQLk1Yk1FOm3DkmySjfe4N9rCWXHEs_Zw5vMmCAq-xmMNIDs4Ov0
https://www.facebook.com/crankyalyson/posts/10157636228599845?__xts__[0]=68.ARDyn-GxfTbmYmeTHZsTFcILpORWXF8Qg7S8bp9la3Y_TwCaRsPBgK9Y1eVEws45eDWhSGDcYWnRhZNZ03P01BLuMMwVsZoSf_jJcIgp1t3e0voagyPhZ_Umnqj7rZeFCKEfVCWi3EohQt4ND0jzNhN95Sorj-kDk7OaNZ06Eg0f_CttZ4v8f3HwBg2M9sKyNcLUF2BtVnQptkH-0x6Q9QEjKBYr5ArK515PpCi12_MXgKwFBqnWvL_3s3gvJN_Q2Qua3j4H_HRkJu4l1wrZCG7fxQJq1u1JKWEGbOB5ljfU9d4kbyA-KE58Jt86ynu1LJe5M-CUwhLCGHj-k5X3VneuNZot2XG7OeHwqqopLFfgG3JilwbglK0C54ny3z9K5raeU9ZKbwQjwhBiqmaV2MlPYpjIdp3zZMFQmLZO4kJuyoMrMlJSsrz0sZYh9M7V_gcd6zEojg40y7yO_x0zO2dEKOtgLT8jXWkMNyp3n5craOF78RroXMf7TroiInO41fI77sUtwo6RSbo76ZgG&__tn__=KH-R
From Maia Espinoza, candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction a list of 18 online resources for education while schools are “out”: https://www.maiaforus.com/online-resources-for-parents

ESD 112 supports districts in Southwest Washington. Here is a link to their page with information and links to all districts that they support: https://www.esd112.org/coronavirus-resources/

Again, if you have additions or changes to the information please let us know and we’ll update immediately.

Meals and Learning information for Southwest Washington districts: (click on the name of the district to be directed to their website page with meal information)

Evergreen