121: How to Reimagine School Options for Next Year
written by: Elan Page
The school year is winding down. Summer plans are starting to take shape. And somewhere in the back of your mind, a quiet thought keeps showing up:
"I don't know exactly what next year should look like. But I know it needs to look different than this."
Maybe your child didn't make the academic progress you were hoping to see. Maybe they were bored, checked out, or just going through the motions. Maybe you're the one who's worn out because this year felt chaotic more often than it felt smooth.
Whatever it is, you don't have to be able to name it perfectly to know that something needs to shift. Because moving into next year without getting honest about this one usually just means more of the same. So let's slow down and actually think through it — with intention, not panic.
So here's a framework to help you slow down and think through it with intention.
Pay Attention to What This School Year Is Telling You
Whether you’re feeling good about the current school year or not, those feelings are not you “overthinking” things. That feeling is data. And it deserves your attention.
You don't necessarily need to make massive changes tomorrow. But you should absolutely slow down and explore what you're feeling, observing, and possibly avoiding.
A good place to start is by asking yourself some honest questions:
- When you look at where your child is academically right now - their skills, their growth, their confidence as a learner - are you genuinely satisfied with the progress you're seeing?
- When you imagine your child five years from now, does your current setup feel like it's moving your family toward that vision, or away from it?
- What are you willing to admit isn't working?
These questions are meant to give you a healthy starting place because clarity almost always starts with honesty. And you can't design something better until you're willing to look clearly at what isn't working right now.
“Fine” Is NOT the Same as Thriving
This one matters, because "fine" is sneaky.
A lot of educational setups are “fine”: your child is doing okay academically and you made it through the school year.
But “fine” is not the same thing as thriving. And your family deserves to know the difference.
So here are some things worth considering:
- Does your child seem genuinely excited about learning, or do they approach school like something to just get through?
- Are their unique strengths, gifts, and interests actually being nurtured in your current setup, or are those things mostly being set aside because there's no time or room for them right now?
- Is your current pace actually sustainable, or are you and your family struggling to have the energy to make it through the week?
There's no judgment in any of your answers, but your honesty matters. Because "fine" has a way of becoming the ceiling that keeps your family limited. And you deserve more than that.
Your Family Has More Education Options Than You Think
Here's where things start to open up.
Without realizing it, most of us have a very fixed mental image of what "school" looks like, as if there’s only one “right” way to educate a child. But that’s completely false because now, more than ever, there’s such a diverse array of education options available to your family:
- Traditional public or private schools
- Hybrid school models: where kids go into a classroom setting a few days a week and learn from home the rest of the time, giving you the best of both worlds. I offer guidance on this hybrid setup here.
- Virtual schools: fully online schools where students follow a structured curriculum and school schedule on their computer, rather than in a physical building. You can learn more about virtual schools here.
- Microschools and learning pods: smaller, more intimate educational communities, which are often more flexible and offer more personalized learning than traditional school environments. This Florida school is a great example of what microschools have to offer.
- Homeschool: offers a variety of approaches, from structured, curriculum-based approaches to fully interest-led learning and everything in between.
If you've been running this school year inside one box and it hasn't been working, give yourself full permission to look outside of it. Ask yourself: what if there's a better fit out there for us?
That question alone could completely change the trajectory of next year.
Why So Many Families Are Considering Homeschooling
If homeschooling is something you’ve been quietly considering, I want to go a bit deeper on this topic.
The thing that makes homeschooling so powerful is that it gives you the ability to truly personalize education for your child as an individual: their specific learning style, their pace, their strengths, and their interests and passions.
So let’s break these things down in more detail:
Learning Styles Matter
Every child has a way they naturally take in and process information best, and yours may lean toward one (or more!) of these learning styles:
- Hands-on learners who love to build, move, and do.
- Visual learners who absorb information through diagrams, color, and imagery.
- Auditory learners who learn best through listening, conversation and discussion.
- Reading/writing learners who enjoy quiet reading time to really internalize a concept.
Kids Thrive at Their Own Pace
In a traditional classroom, there's rarely room to honor all of those differences equally, but in a homeschool environment, you can teach to the way your child learns. And that ability to personalize learning changes everything.
Your child also gets to move at their own pace. If something clicks quickly, you don't have to wait to move on. Conversely, if a topic needs more time, you can take the time that you need. And for kids who've been told — directly or indirectly — that they're moving too slowly, that freedom to move at their pace matters deeply for their confidence and self-esteem.
Homeschooling Creates Space for More
And your child gets the space to genuinely lean into their passions, their interests, their talents. The thing they love? You can build time for it. The thing they're gifted at? You can go deep on it. The flexibility that homeschooling provides creates room for kids to discover who they are.
Flexibility Changes Family Life
There's also real flexibility in your family's daily life. You can travel and keep learning. You can take a slow morning when someone isn't feeling well without it derailing your entire week. Homeschooling gives you the freedom to build education around your family, not the other way around.
Homeschooling may not be the right fit for every family, but if you’ve been considering it, it’s certainly worth learning more.
Don’t Rush a Decision
Here's something important: you don't have to have this all figured out today.
What I've seen happen is when a mom gets to the end of a hard school year - she's exhausted, because something clearly isn't working - and she makes a fast decision because she just wants relief.
While that's completely understandable, sometimes those fast decisions lead to another year of the same struggles you may currently be experiencing.
Intentional decisions take a little more time. They require you to ask the harder questions, take time to consider the answers, and to think honestly about what your child and your family actually need.
So give yourself permission to be in that process right now and to be intentional about your next steps.
Because you're not just buying time; you're being thoughtful.
And that is exactly what your family needs from you.
Ready to explore homeschooling as a real option for your family?
The START Homeschooling Workshop is a free resource designed to help you get grounded, get clear, and actually see what homeschooling could look like for your specific family. If it's been quietly rising to the top of your list, this is a great place to begin.
