The Bench family says virtual schooling makes the most sense.

The four students, all in different grades, attend the online classes through Colorado Connections Academy. And it’s all from the comfort of their home.

“I think it’s pretty neat to be able to be in them and it’s a lot of fun,” Andrew Bench said.

The kids have never been to a school with other children.

“I think it’s easier for me in this setting,” Andrew said.

The sixth grader says he’s able to work at his own pace.

For the rest of the article, go to Virtual School Great Option For Some Students

Experts say online schools give students more flexibility. They can work from home at their own pace. But, they still have to meet the same standards and take the same state standardized tests as students at traditional public schools.

Thirteen-year-old Josh Salles is enrolled in Colorado Connections Academy, one of the state’s virtual public schools. He used to go to public schools, but struggled academically. So far, he says he’s doing well in the non-traditional school setting.

For the rest of the article, go to Growing Number of Students Enrolling in Online Schools

The schedule and structure of a traditional school can be too rigid for some families’ lifestyles and for some students’ learning style. While attending a traditional school, it can be hard for some students to receive individualized instruction and attention. All students do not learn the same way and may not find success in traditional schools.

I’m a teacher at Colorado Virtual Academy - www.k12.com/cova. I’m part of something different, a public-school education alternative. COVA is a tuition-free, public-school option for kids in grades K-12 across the state. It’s an education alternative where kids attend public school from their homes.

For the rest of the article, go to Families have an online school choice

Several alternatives are available for parents like signing up their child at a charter school, private school or even ride the new wave of technology and register them for online schooling instead.

K12 is an option for parents looking to provide their children with an education outside of the four walls of a classroom. The educational model for K12 is to give its student an individualized education supporting his or her needs through its curriculum. K12 provides online education from grades K-12 across the country from the comfort of your own home and is available in some public schools. Visit www.K12.com for more information.

For the rest of the article, go to Choosing your child’s school

FALCON, COLO. — Students are heading back to school, but some students in District 49 are trading in their text books for computers.

District 49 has launched a brand new virtual academy.

“This is a paradigm shift in education and this is a different way to think about doing schooling,” said Kim McClelland, Principal of Falcon Virtual Academy.

“We get kids who want to come in because they’ve been bullied in school and they just want to focus in on school or we get kids who they just want an extra challenge,” said McClelland.

For the rest of the article, go to D49 launches virtual academy

DENVER, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Today, online students from the Colorado Virtual Academy (COVA) begin classes for the official start of the 2010-2011 school year. The Colorado Virtual Academy is a tuition-free online public school that uses the award-winning K12 curriculum, which combines online courses with traditional education materials. COVA is the largest online school in the state and serves students in kindergarten through high school.

“COVA provides a unique education opportunity where students, teachers and parents work in an education partnership, and where each child receives the tools, individual attention, and resources needed to receive the highest quality education,” said COVA Head of School Heidi Heineke-Magri. “We are all very excited to begin the new school year.”

For the rest of the article, go to Colorado Virtual Academy Students Begin the 2010-2011 School Year

Traditional classrooms don’t work for all high school students, some of whom may travel, work long hours or have young children at home.

Recruitment and Enrollment Coordinator Kristie Ingram works with Guided Online Academic Learning, an online public school, which allows flexible schedules, individualized attention and pursuit of personal and education goals. The academy also allows students the opportunity to pursue dual high school and college credits.

“We are a statewide public charter school,” Ingram said. “So, we’re all over. We have mobile classrooms we drive all over the state.”

Ingram brought one of the mobile classrooms to Pioneer Park Friday to help Alan Van Norman, a GOAL teacher, with a Battle of the Bands memorial benefit for the families of Abelina Gallegos and Lacey and Jessica Dunovsky, who recently were killed in a rollover accident.

For the rest of the article, go to Online public school offers options for local students

This year’s “Innovation Lab” at Thompson Valley High School is a creative foray into what is called an “open source” classroom, where students utilize materials and resources from around the world via the Internet and are not bound by just one textbook.

Another example is “Thompson Online,” our online school.

This new school provides a way for our students to access a comprehensive curriculum at any time and to learn at their own pace.

Furthermore, we anticipate that this approach will evolve into a blend of online learning and face-to-face conferences with caring teachers, taking advantage of personal pacing and flexibility while retaining the personal touch of compassionate staff.

For the rest of the article, go to Start of new school year has promise for all

As more and more families seek alternatives to traditional school, we’re seeing an increase in students blending homeschool and online education. Every family and situation is different, but regardless of the circumstance, a tough decision has to be made when homeschooled students enter their high school years. In the past, the choices have typically been a) continue homeschooling through high school or b) start at/return to a traditional brick & mortar school.

Now, thanks to public online schools, like Insight Schools, families have a choice that offers different options for student-centered learning that didn’t exist just a few years ago – eliminating the either/or choice of the past. Insight Schools and other online education providers are allowing students to enroll full-time as well as part-time. A full-time option allows students to take a full course-load in the environment they’re accustomed to and still have their parent by their side, while part-time enrollment gives them the option of taking a class or two while still receiving instruction from their parents for their remaining courses.

For the rest of the article, go to Online Courses Offer Options, Support for Homeschooling Families

Students will be allowed to work at their own pace, but they are encouraged to reach benchmarks to be able to stay on course with the lessons.

Students’ work will be both computer and teacher graded.

Students may choose to participate in band, vocational classes and sports at the high school as long as they meet requirements of the district’s athletic handbooks, Maurer said.

Students participating in the online school also will be required to meet with an instructor two hours each week at the school district, 403 W. Fifth St. Maurer said he will touch base with parents once a month.

For the rest of the article, go to RE-2 offering online school