DETROIT – Families in Metro Detroit are turning to neighbors and other parents to help them get through homeschooling this fall. They’re setting up groups of students in one place to learn remotely.
It’s called “Pods in the Pandemic.”
When Michigan schools shut down last March because of the coronavirus (COVID-19), parents scrambled to continue their children’s education at home. For many families, homeschool will be the option this fall.
The memory of how stressful and confusing the process was in the spring has many parents determined to find a better way.
The new look of homeschooling might take the form of what is referred to by some as a “COVID pod.”
“It basically means you get together with like-minded families and take turns during the school week,” mother Kendra Monotante said.
Monotante and fellow mother Marget Gusumano started a Facebook page to see if other parents in their neighborhood had interest in a shared learning experience.
“Forty-five families responded and said, ‘We’re very interested,‘” Gusumano said.
The place to start organizing a pod is talking with other parents.
There are as many different styles of COVID pod as there are families. Gusumano’s pod will have all the children meeting at the same house every day.
Mother Joanna Serra said her child’s pod will be mobile.
“Our plan is to take turns in different houses,” Serra said.
All of the mothers said they plan to follow the online curriculum of their school district.
With the school year fast approaching, more districts are announcing their decisions on in-person or virtual learning. Click here to view the breakdown by district.
You can hear more from the mothers in Steve Garagiola’s full story above.