Do you think an online, real-time, virtual classroom for teaching math would valuable for homeschoolers?

Question

I am contemplating putting together a service for homeschooled children in the middle grades, and I am looking for input.

The service would be live online math classes for 5th grade through High School Geometry students. Students would be a part of a "web meeting" or "web conference" and would participate in a real-time, virtual classroom. I, as the teacher, would present material and guide students through a traditional math curriculum. The virtual classroom would function similarly to a normal classroom, but without many of the negatives. Students would be able to see and hear me present material on their home computer via a high quality web cam, be able to ask and answer questions, as well as work with other students. All of this could happen w/o leaving home.

The classes would be held 4-5 days each week and would be about 1 hr. long. Cost would be about $50/month for a 10 month school year.

Thanks for your input.

Answer 1

We use ALEKs math online. Maybe you could utilize their program along with a virtual classroom. I think many parents who homeschool would find this useful!

Best of Luck to you

Warm Regards,

jana

http://www.purehomeschooling.com...

http://www.summerhouseliving.com...

Answer 2

Yep, I definitely know there will be interest. We run a free online home school co-op that is using Elluminate for the web conferencing. We don't have any volunteer teachers for that age range but we do have families interested. Contact me so that I can pass along your information and feel free to take a look at what we are doing. Perhaps there will be a few resources we can give to you to give you a hand up.

Our online course co-op is at www.virtualhomeschoolgroup.com if you want to take a look at how we set things up. I am Tammy Moore. You can contact me at [e-mail].

Answer 3

Hi,

There is a definite need-especially for science and math.  I am developing an online LA/Writing program for unschoolers and emerging writers so I know exactly where you are coming from. If you offered both asynchronous and synchronous course offerings, you would be offering the flexibility people need.  I will be teaching with Tammy Moore's Virtual Homeschool Group class this fall.  You really should check it out.  The benefits could be enormous.  Good luck to both of us!

Answer 4

We have used Saxon with the DIVE CD rom.     It helped our son by seeing the examples written out and explained step by step ,even though the teacher did the same thing that the book said to do.   The DIVE CD was $50.00.  The books  bought at the used book store were around $50.00.  

Comparing $100.00 to $500.00, I don't see the benefits of a virtual classroom.

Answer 5

Maybe. For our family, to have something scheduled like that every day would be difficult. Our schedule varies from day to day, as do the schedules of most homeschoolers we know. We attend tutorials/co-ops, homeschool group activities, etc. It'd have to be early in the morning not to interfere with anything else. We're home 4-5 hrs a day most school days but not the same hours each day.