Liverpool, N.Y. (NCC News) — On Monday, Liverpool Public Library held an online edition of their homeschooling 101 series for parents. The goal is to provide the necessary tools to help their homeschooled child prepare for the upcoming academic year.
Youth services librarian and event coordinator, Deanna McGregor, said that while many other public school students were struggling to adapt to remote learning, homeschooled families didn’t have to make as hard of an adjustment.
“As far as potential academic slide, I don’t think the homeschoolers were affected because they were already using the curriculum they had been using,” McGregor said.
In this series, parents build their lesson plans, but the program goes much deeper than that, including state regulations and local resources for homeschoolers. McGregor said adjusting the sessions to a fully virtual experience was both beneficial and unfavorable; It helped parents attend every part of the series when some may not have been able to make in-person sessions in the past. Yet the students lost the ability to network and learn from other homeschooled families.
“In previous years it was always in person. People could bring the curriculum to the library that they were done with, so we also had a curriculum exchange element to homeschooling 101,” McGregor said.
Outside of the classroom, homeschooled students found it most difficult to network on a social scale with their friends during the pandemic. Unlike public schools, where students still had access to gym class, music and various interactions with their classmates on school grounds, homeschooled families relied on community resources that closed down during COVID-19. McGregor said the closure of the YMCA, public libraries and other recreational outlets left homeschooled students isolated.
“These are their support groups and friends. I think the misconception is that homeschooled families are home all the time, but that’s just not true,” McGregor said.
As the fall approaches and students prepare to go back to school, McGregor said the library plans to reopen hybrid activities for homeschooled families to enjoy once again.
