We asked Ivywood parents what their experience has been continuing the learning process at home and this is what they had to say!
Parent experience #1
Ivywood’s Virtues have become life lessons for us these past few days in our endeavor to continue education at home because of the COVID-19 pandemic. We have COURAGE and are taking action even when we are scared. It is my children’s WONDER that motivates me in the morning to open the books and start the lessons. We are striving for HUMILITY and INTEGRITY during this time, serving others above ourselves and doing the right thing when no one is watching.
This endeavor would not be possible without the support and dedication of our Ivywood teachers! I was so impressed and relieved to receive detailed lesson plans from both of my children’s teachers. These plans included printables, links, videos etc. saving me countless hours of trying to piece together resources. I think the continuation of school and the use of their workbooks has in its own way provided a sense of comfort to my children. I love checking the family Facebook page for Ivywood and seeing pictures of students working on projects or parents posting videos of reading books.
So far we have been able to stick to our plan. We are up, dressed and ready to start “school” at the table by 9 am. I work with my second grader while my first grader works on the computer and we switch back and forth as needed throughout the morning. We are keeping up with March is reading month with Mystery readers via Facetime and youtube. Today my daughter is really missing her friends and teacher so she is coloring cards to send in the mail. I am sure that we will face some challenges being cooped up in the house but we are hopeful and look forward to the day when we can learn together again!
- Kayla Cruthers, current parent of two Ivywood students
Parent experience #2:
The rather sudden transition to a “classical homeschooling” model due to the mandated school closures in Michigan has been incredibly seamless for our family for a couple of key reasons. Firstly, we received swift communication from Mrs. Kooiker, our principal at Ivywood Classical Academy, stating that all textbooks and schoolwork were to be brought home on the last day school was open. Secondly, our teachers followed up quickly with richly detailed lesson plans for each subject by day. As a parent, I was given the tools and road maps needed to implement and continue learning for my first-grader and fourth-grader. This level of preparedness shown by Ivywood greatly decreased my stress levels as a parent since the onus of creating an impromptu curriculum was not placed on me, and for that, I am very grateful!
As a parent with no homeschooling experience, I have found it beneficial to engage my children in this transition and strive to maintain normalcy. As a starting point, we chose a dedicated space in our home, our living room, to transform into our classroom. When my kids step into that room now, they know the expectations for academics and behavior are the exact same as “real” school. After deciding where our “school” would be, my kids had the idea to decorate their new classroom with posters and some of their own notes. This gave them a sense of ownership by being involved in creating their new classroom. To ease the transition, we try to keep as many things as possible the same. For example, we begin our day at 8:45 a.m. sharp, say the Pledge of Allegiance and follow a daily schedule of subjects just like at ICA.
It has not been easy trying to teach two different grade levels simultaneously and I’m sure we will face more challenges along the way, but having this exceptionally solid start has really helped. Our days are filled with learning and are focused on achieving goals, which is not only good for my children’s education, but also helps take our minds off the ominous outbreak.
- Kelly Andersson, current parent of two Ivywood students