Giulia's Story

Overview

Giulia, Mother of Three | Tri-state Area

When schools closed in the Spring 2020 Giulia was sure she could handle teaching her three children. But after weeks of playing teacher she realized that being able to do something and being able to explain how to do it are two completely different things. With 3 kids in different grades and with different learning abilities it was beyond hard it was downright difficult. She didn’t like the idea of her kids being sequestered in their rooms all day staring at a computer screen. COVID isolated them enough and she wondered how this new learning would affect them over the course of a year or more.

As a parent she thought, “What if my kids don’t get a great education in the Spring, and what happens if that’s compounded in the next school year?

Trying to help one student with physics while another shouted down the hall for help with reading was overwhelming and she knew it could only be short-term.

Without knowing how long COVID-19 and school closings would last, Giulia worried how Zoom learning would affect her kids over the course of a year or more.

Solution

Introducing SchoolHouse

One day a friend came to Giulia with a solution that would take a weight off of her shoulders. With SchoolHouse she found she could replace herself and the Zoom lessons with an experienced, credentialed teacher who would teach a small group of students together in a “learning pod”.

You have the opportunity to choose a teacher who knows how to get the spark out of every child. They can start with the core curriculum and work with parents to learn what we care about, like linking history lessons with current events. It’s a totally different mindset.

Insight

A parent's perspective

Even if you take away the safety concerns of COVID-19, the ability to have a 4:1 or 6:1 student to teacher ratio is amazing! When you have 26 kids in a class, there’s no way you can give everyone the attention they need. We’ve done one-on-one tutoring in the past but in most cases it’s just once a week for an hour. That’s better than nothing but you’re not going to make or break whatever topic they’re working on in an hour a week.

At first it was completely overwhelming trying to help one student with physics while another shouted down the hall for help with reading. After a while we found a rhythm that seemed to work, but it was a very short-term solution. I told myself we just needed to get through a few months before returning to regular school in the fall, but now the stakes are higher. As a parent you think, what if my child didn’t get a great education in the spring, and what happens if that’s compounded in the next school year?

rESULTS

The SchoolHouse Way

Giulia was able to fully replace herself and the Zoom lessons with an experienced, credentialed teacher. She was even able to give her kids back their social life and keep their risk low. Giulia also likes the way the curriculum gives teachers the freedom to approach topics in the way that makes the most sense for the kids, instead of teaching to the test.