K12.com - Virtual School AND Summer Camps

by Nancy Hall
(Chicago, IL)

We are off on a new adventure with the 2011-12 school year - the Chicago Virtual Charter School using the K12 curriculum. So far, I'm excited about the quality of what K12 brings, but somewhat apprehensive about the charter/public school aspect of things. This is a low-cost introduction to virtual schooling, though, and if we like K12 but not the Charter aspect, we may start saving and invest ourselves in 2012.

Over the last few weeks, we've been introduced to an aspect of virtual school at K12 that is now called Classroom Connect (formerly Elluminate) by attending Virtual Camps. These have been a great thing, as Chicago was 100 degrees plus last week and we were not wanting to actually GO anywhere. Instead, we logged in for virtual camps/classes on art, recycling, water safety and the magic of science from the comfort of the air-conditioned living room.

As these are offered to anyone enrolled in K12, anywhere in the world, the class sizes ranged from 60 to 200, which felt a little large. Seems like our age bracket (K-5) could be split further to facilitate smaller classes and encourage easier interaction. We enjoyed Art Camp most, I think, but learned something from all of them. It was a great way to be introduced to an aspect of K12 that I'm sure we'll be very comfortable with soon.

We've also enjoyed some samplings of games and school activities that are offered in the online school. It's more of a way to slowly get acquainted with K12 and keep my almost-1st grader excited about school at home.

Excellent review, Nancy! Thanks for taking the time to help other parents learn more about K12.com Virtual School and Summer Camps; your thoughts are informative and helpful. Blessings, Heather :)