Like a lot of families, mine has experienced different learning environments over the last two years. But in our case, trying out online and blended learning predated the pandemic. My older kids Kalyn and Rayden thrived at Oklahoma Virtual Charter Academy, and Kalyn graduated from the online school in 2017. Since then, I became ready to enroll my younger kids in our local brick-and-mortar school as a mom who works full-time from home. Then came COVID-19.
After seeing how the rocky road of emergency virtual learning affected my son Bronx in kindergarten and first grade during the pandemic, and my twins about to start kindergarten, I knew I had to make a plan that worked best for our family. Witnessing the success my older kids had at Oklahoma Virtual Charter Academy gave me the confidence to enroll my younger kids, but as a working mom I was unsure how I could support all three learning virtually. OVCA helped me identify my options, and my twins are happily enrolled at our local school while Bronx is thriving in second grade online.
Bronx can work at his own pace, and I can support him while I work full-time. He quickly caught up on any learning loss that occurred during the pandemic, thanks to his teachers’ encouragement and an offered summer learning program. Bronx‘s education is personalized for him and his pace of learning -he is even taking fourth-grade math as a second grader! I am deeply connected to his progress, and he can stay socially active with outings hosted by OVCA. The relationships we have formed with Bronx’s teachers have been support-filled and I am truly thankful for the connections that have come from our experience with OVCA.
More than anything, I am thankful that Oklahoma provides a variety of options that support learning for all my students. I hope all Oklahoma students are aware of the options available to them and continue to have access to the resources that come along with school choice – it has truly been life-changing for our family!
For more information on Oklahoma Virtual Charter Academy, visit https://ovca.k12.com/
