Appeal Tribune Wednesday, July 26, 2017 3B
Canyon views
Lyons mom shares thoughts
about kids’ online education
JOLENE KINCAID
COMMENTARY
I never thought nine years ago I would
be writing to the local paper about our
family’s experience with the online pub-
lic school our children attend, but when
Oregon Connections Academy (ORCA)
asked me to share my thoughts, I was
happy to tell our story.
I also know summer is a good time for
families to consider options for their stu-
dent’s school. When my friends ask me
about Oregon Connections Academy, I
tell them our experience, but also en-
courage them to explore other choices.
Maybe this column will be informative
for other families, too, as they begin
their journey.
We started with ORCA when my son,
Garrett, was midway through first
grade, and my daughter, Sidney, was still
in kindergarten. Garrett will be a junior
this fall, and Sidney will be a sophomore.
Oregon Connections Academy is the best
school for our family, but we know it
doesn’t work for everyone.
When we first came to ORCA, our stu-
dents were attending a private school,
and it just wasn’t working for us. The
kids were exhausted by mid-afternoon,
and we had so little family time in the
evenings as we rushed to deal with
homework, dinner, and bedtime by a de-
cent time. All this only to get up and do it
all over again.
The children didn’t present behavior
problems, and they weren’t struggling
academically, but we felt they were still
slipping through the cracks and not get-
ting the attention they needed. We didn’t
blame the teachers; it was just hard to
provide individual time for every stu-
dent when some had discipline issues.
I was worried that if I homeschooled,
I would not teach them the right things.
It was then that a parent with students
currently attending Oregon Connections
Academy told me about the school. I did
my own research about the program and
we decided to try this online public
school rather than homeschool.
Right away ORCA was a great fit for
our students. The lessons meet state
standards and they’re already provided,
and state licensed teachers are there for
instruction and support, so you never
feel like you’re alone.
Over the years we’ve especially loved
the balance of flexibility and account-
ability at the school. ORCA is truly what
you want to make of it. For example, your
students can attend some or all of the in-
teractive online classes they call
LiveLesson sessions, though we highly
recommend attending LiveLesson ses-
sions regularly.
Students and parents can get as much
help and feedback as they need from
teachers. We have had such a great expe-
rience with everyone, from the enroll-
ment and tech support staff, to the teach-
ers and administrators.
Every ORCA family is different, but
we have a daily routine for school: we
COURTESY OF OREGON CONNECTIONS ACADEMY
Jolene, Garrett and Sidney Kincaid of Lyons share thoughts about their experiences with online education.
wake up pretty much the same time ev-
ery day, have breakfast, get dressed, and
begin school. The kids do better when we
complete most core classes before
lunch, and then work on other classes, or
projects that take a little longer, after
lunch. My kids love the fact that when
they’re finished for the day, they’re done
— no evening homework.
They enjoy having downtime and
through the years my children have had
lots of socialization opportunities. The
kids have participated in dance, they’re
active in their church youth group, com-
munity service, youth sports, and enjoy
4-H archery. We have friends in the OR-
CA online school community, as well as
homeschool families. Sometimes we get
together to just hang out, and other times
we go on our own mini field trips.
Both my kids also enjoy Oregon Con-
nections Academy’s fun and educational
field trips. There are dozens of these
events around the state throughout the
school year and families can choose to at-
tend or not. Our family highly recom-
mends attending field trips. We love the
opportunity to meet ORCA teachers and
other families.
The curriculum at Oregon Connec-
tions Academy is top notch, including an
incredible variety of electives. One of
the things I love the most about ORCA is
the staff is constantly coming up with
ways to make the school even better. We
were thrilled when the school started an
annual prom two years ago and added
student government last year. My son
participated in both additions and feels
they make him even more a part of the
school.
The flexible schedule with online
learning has been really helpful. We like
that with ORCA, if archery runs late, or
something else is going on, and we get
home later than usual, we can sleep in a
little. That way there is no need to rush
out the door to make it to class on time.
One year, when my kids got really sick,
we kept up with school by having them
do a couple hours of lessons, rest, then do
a few more. In a regular bricks-and-mor-
tar school, they would have fallen so far
behind, it would have taken weeks for
them to catch up with their classmates.
I asked my children to talk about Ore-
gon Connections Academy and this is
what Sidney wrote:
“I like how the curriculum is chal-
lenging and engaging. I can get one-on-
one
time to talk with a teacher when I
need help. In bricks-and-mortar schools,
sometimes a student can be overlooked
and never get the help they need to suc-
ceed. The teachers care about students
learning at ORCA, and are always there
to lend a hand. I never feel rushed to
complete an assignment.”
Here is the feedback I received from
Garrett:
“The program is very flexible for dif-
ferent schedules. All of the teachers are
very helpful, and work with each student
to try and help them succeed. The school
is very welcoming to new students, and
will help you get on your feet. ORCA pro-
vides opportunities for growth for stu-
dents of all grades and educational lev-
els.”
If you do try Oregon Connections
Academy, it can be a big adjustment ini-
tially for students and parents alike, but
don’t give up too soon and do reach out
for help. There is so much support avail-
able, you just have to ask. ORCA con-
nects new Learning Coaches — parents
or other responsible adults — who have
questions or are struggling with experi-
enced Learning Coaches for assistance.
Anyone interested in making a
change in their child’s education this fall,
now is the perfect time to study the al-
ternatives — charter schools, private
schools, homeschooling and more. I en-
courage those who are curious about
Oregon Connections Academy to check
out one of the in-person or online infor-
mation sessions going on this summer.
You can find out more at www.Oregon-
ConnectionsAcademy.com/Events
Jolene Kincaid or Lyons is the parent
of two Oregon Connections Academy stu-
dents.
Enrollment is now open for the 2017-18
school year. For information, contact OR-
CA
at
www.OregonConnectionsAcademy.com
or by calling (800) 382-6010.
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