Meet Stephen

Stephen is a college-bound competitive athlete who needs a more flexible class schedule to train without compromising academic performance. He gets that with K12-powered online private school.

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Why This Family Chose K12

As a competitive athlete, Stephen needed a flexible schooling option that would accommodate his swimming schedule while still preparing him for college. Kimberly, Stephen’s mom and Learning Coach, wanted him to receive a quality private education that also fit in with her varied work schedule.

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Compete at a high level

Stephen was invited to join a more advanced swimming group—but saying yes meant leaving school 30 minutes early one day a week. He needed more scheduling flexibility.

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Receive support and flexibility

Stephen and Kimberly wanted a school that would support his swimming commitments and understand his unique needs and interests.

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Prepare for a bright future

Stephen needed a quality education that would get him ready for the future and provide the necessary rigorous curriculum for college prep.

A Day in the Life of Stephen

Now, Stephen can swim every morning and spend afternoons achieving his academic goals. He is encouraged to work at his own pace, take electives that include career-based learning, and earn college credit.

CLASSES AND ASSIGNMENTS

Learn in a Variety of Ways: Online and Offline

Stephen’s schoolwork includes a combination of live, scheduled classes and self-guided offline assignments and activities. These can be completed around his intense swimming schedule at his own pace. By managing his schedule, Stephen is learning important time management, boundary-setting, and organization skills he’ll need in college.

Fun Outside the Classroom

Stephen’s time away from the computer includes second breakfasts after early morning swim practices, gaming sessions with friends, and quality time with family.

SOCIALIZATION

Attend Events With Friends and Meet New People

Stephen has plenty of opportunities to socialize with peers at in-person events, including performing arts shows, movie nights, and culturally diverse holiday parties. The online learning system is also designed to encourage collaboration between students.

EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

Kick-Start an New Club

Students at K12-powered schools can choose from a variety of extracurriculars and clubs — or create new opportunities that match their interests. Stephen co-founded his school’s gaming club, which now has over 80 members from around the world.

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

Adventure Far Beyond the Classroom

When Stephen traveled to Philadelphia, his history teacher helped him connect in-person experiences to classroom concepts. Stephen was even able to apply knowledge gained from museums and historical sites in an end-of-semester essay.

A Day in the Life of Kimberly

Developing an online learning solution that works for your district takes the right skills and platform. Fortunately, we can help you with both.

TIME COMMITMENT

Encourage Your Child’s Learning Around Your Schedule

Like most high schoolers, Stephen can be independent for a large portion of the school day. Kimberly spends about one to three hours guiding and encouraging him each day as his Learning Coach. Thanks to the scheduling flexibility, she can provide support around her busy property management schedule.

TEACHER SUPPORT

Get Support from Your Educational Copilots 

Kimberly is supported by an engaging and accessible team of state-certified educators. They bring course content to life for Stephen, even in subjects that hadn’t previously piqued his interest. In addition to asking questions during live classes, Stephen can reach out by email or during weekly office hours.

schedule

Get Excited for School and Sports

Stephen usually starts his day with a self-directed precalculus lesson. Later, he attends live classes for his thesis project, honors English, and science, all led by state-certified teachers. Sometimes his science teacher assigns a lab activity that Stephen can complete later in the day or week.

schedule

Get Excited for School and Sports

Stephen usually starts his day with a self-directed precalculus lesson. Later, he attends live classes for his thesis project, honors English, and science, all led by state-certified teachers. Sometimes his science teacher assigns a lab activity that Stephen can complete later in the day or week.

CURRICULUM

Explore Fascinating Topics and Personal Interests

Tenth-grade students like Stephen typically take between three and six subjects each semester. Two to three subjects typically have scheduled, live classes, while the others involve self-guided assignments and skills labs in the K12 interactive online learning system. Students like Stephen can also explore a variety of electives, including career-based and advanced options.

ADVANCED ACADEMICS

Pursue College Credit, Mentoring, and More

Stephen’s K12-powered online private school offers an elite college preparatory experience and rigorous curriculum to help him get ready for his future. He can dive deep into the subjects he enjoys and even pursue dual enrollment options to earn college credits. Plus, college counselors provide one-to-one mentoring to help him find his post-graduation path.

Family Q&A

K12-powered online private school can provide the flexibility student athletes look for without slowing academic acceleration.

Question 1 of 5

Why do you like online school?

Stephen likes online school because he can go at his own pace through the material and assignments. The teachers don’t have to wait for the whole class to be on the same page. I like it because I see that Stephen is more secure in who he is now. I can see his enthusiasm, motivation, and confidence growing.

Question 2 of 5

How was the transition to online school?

We applied to the online private school, and within four days of attending the info session, we knew it was the right decision. The school understood my concerns and need for flexibility. Stephen is happier now—he’s feeling a new level of confidence and is making friends because he can really be himself.

Question 3 of 5

How does Stephen keep up with friends doing online school?

Our K12-powered private school has a great community. Stephen has made some friends at school who I don’t think he would have met at his old school—honestly, I think that has made him a better student and person. With the global school community, he gets to meet people from across the U.S. and other countries.

Question 4 of 5

How do your teachers support you?

As a former teacher at a traditional, in-person school, I was blown away by how good the teachers were at keeping students engaged on screen. The way they build in questioning strategies and collaborative discussion is fantastic. They’re also super responsive. Stephen has developed a great mentee/mentor rela…

Question 5 of 5

Do you have any advice for families considering online private school?

Remember that there’s support for parents, too. Our K12-powered online private school has a parent platform where we can help each other and ask questions, a monthly parent video call, and a school-run Facebook group. It’s like having that social connection you get from a parent’s association in your pocket.

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Learning With K12

From kindergarten to high school, K12 provides tuition-free online education that empowers students to learn in ways that work for them. Browse options in your state to find the perfect fit for your family.

These are the stories of real students attending K12-powered schools and their families. Content is a combination of direct quotes and summaries from interviews. Their stories each reflect their experiences at their respective schools. Actual experiences can vary by student and school. These pages are designed to reflect a typical day in the life of a student attending an online K12-powered school. Individual class schedules and requirements will vary by state, school, and the individual needs of each student.