Any former teachers teaching other kids in a home setting during COVID?

[WatchingThemGrow]

A neighbor asked on the listserve for a retired teacher to work with 2-3 first graders for the coming school year...like 8-12 or 9-1 in a separate space in their home.

2 of my 3 kids want to do online school, one want to go back so he can play basketball with his friends (!) but we do think he may be more successful if he has face to face instruction/accountability. Not sure what we will actually end up doing. I’m inclined to keep them all home and BE home with them.

The past 3 years I have subbed and worked with small groups as an interventionist. The sub pay is nothing ($119/day) and the intervention pay includes all my years of experience and my specialist degree. I’m not sure what this neighbor has in mind for compensation, but I’m not feeling like subbing will be safe.

Has anyone else thought through this?


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[meggie t]

I have not done this but long story short, a group of parents that I was in a homeschool co-op with hired a teacher to teach 4-5 children on the same grade level 4 hours per day, 4 days a week (the other day was co-op day; the teacher also gave them some work to do on the 5th day that the parents oversaw. Minimal since the children were 1st and then second graders). I'll say school year was about 30-32 work weeks total (not including vacation) and she was compensated approx. $5k per child (might be slightly higher; was based on approx. $50/hr). It was a nice set up for the kids and the teacher. One of the parents had the classroom set up in her home with a whiteboard and desks. They have been doing this for 3 years now.

[gatorsmom]

I have not done this but long story short, a group of parents that I was in a homeschool co-op with hired a teacher to teach 4-5 children on the same grade level 4 hours per day, 4 days a week (the other day was co-op day; the teacher also gave them some work to do on the 5th day that the parents oversaw. Minimal since the children were 1st and then second graders). I'll say school year was about 30-32 work weeks total (not including vacation) and she was compensated approx. $5k per child (might be slightly higher; was based on approx. $50/hr). It was a nice set up for the kids and the teacher. One of the parents had the classroom set up in her home with a whiteboard and desks. They have been doing this for 3 years now.

A friend of mine is a doctor and has 4 sisters who are nurses. They all have 5-6 kids each and have been so busy this spring. They thought about hiring a teacher or taking turns teaching each other’s kids and forming their own homeschool- school similar to what Meggiet is describing. Right now they have all their kids at our kids’ small private school.

[acmom]

I had not thought of this, but I am a former classroom teacher and have considered offering online/distance tutoring and consulting for families next year. (I usually work for a local university overseeing student teachers and also have some early intervention/preschool special ed cases, but who knows this year! I don't even know what my own kids will be doing at this point).

I briefly subbed but didn't enjoy it and would really not want to sub in this current situation. I think I might be comfortable with the situation you describe, depending on how it was set up and if I could make it work with my own kids' needs. (I think I might actually be more comfortable with it in a dedicated space in my home though so I had control of materials, cleaning, etc.) The idea of working with a small group of kids and being able to provide both an in person educational and social/emotional piece would be appealing to me work-wise. Reminds me of an article I read about the concept of "micro-schools".

I'd be interested in hearing if anyone else has considered this...

[carolinamama]

I'm not a former teacher but DD has been working with one. Her tutor previously taught for years and at some point trained to use the Lindamood Bell method for reading help. She was recommended to us when we learned of DD's dyslexia. She has worked with her for almost 2 years now. When Covid hit and kids were out of school, her tutor became much more like a teacher for us. DD was in a Montessori school, which was tough online so we regrouped and prioritized working with her tutor. She went from only working on reading to adding math and social studies. They met using FaceTime. She dropped off materials (books and packets) about every week or so. I can honestly say that despite her learning challenges, DD progressed through all the distance learning. Other kids worked with her in person and she has been holding some small group math and reading groups this summer. She adapted to whatever her students needed and plans to do the same this school year. I pay $50/hr. Not sure what she charges for small groups but plans to offer them as requested this school year.

I suspect there will be a market for small group education this year for both parents who choose virtual and those that send kids back to a hybrid model if that's offered. I would prefer a virtual only (or homeschool) group both as the teacher and student family for decreased exposure.

[ang79]

I have my teaching degree, though my current license is lapsed since I haven't taught in my own classroom since before I had kids. i have worked as a day-to-day substitute in our school district for the past 6 years and I did enjoy it. But I'm not sure about doing it this year (I am still waiting to hear what our district plan is and what precautions they are taking). I normally work in K-6 grades among 3-4 different buildings, so that is a lot of exposure to different kids. Even if I just asked to be a dedicated sub in one or two buildings for this year, that would still be a lot of exposure to different classes each day. Plus, I would like to be home to assist my own kids if needed if they are doing online work due to a hybrid schedule or a shut down. But we could also use the income. I did a brief search for online tutors and teachers when schools were first shut down last March, but had a hard time finding legit postings. I worked for several years awhile back as an online tutor for Educate Online and enjoyed that, but they shut down their K-12 programming and now only focus on college level remediation classes or something I am not qualified to teach. If anyone has any input on places to look for online teaching or tutoring jobs, let me know!

I was texting with a friend last night and she is very concerned if her kids have virtual classes again this year, as she will most likely have to go back to her office soon and her husband is working from home but can't manage work and schooling at the same time. I had a brief thought of having her kids come here to work while my kids are working on school work a few hours a day and I could help them as needed, but DH will most likely be working from home for awhile longer and we don't currently have the space for extra people here while he is working from home.

[JustMe]

I am not a teacher, but just want to say that if you want to explore options to teach from your home this fall, you may want to consider seeing if any online schools are hiring. I was looking at online schools for my kids and they are almost all expanding and hiring where I live.

[Melaine]

I have not done this but long story short, a group of parents that I was in a homeschool co-op with hired a teacher to teach 4-5 children on the same grade level 4 hours per day, 4 days a week (the other day was co-op day; the teacher also gave them some work to do on the 5th day that the parents oversaw. Minimal since the children were 1st and then second graders). I'll say school year was about 30-32 work weeks total (not including vacation) and she was compensated approx. $5k per child (might be slightly higher; was based on approx. $50/hr). It was a nice set up for the kids and the teacher. One of the parents had the classroom set up in her home with a whiteboard and desks. They have been doing this for 3 years now.

This is very interesting. In my state, they would not be considered homeschoolers because the parent has to be responsible for 51% of the teaching time. I’m sure there are ways around that and I certainly have no issue with it.

[Dayzy]

When our schools were shut down a friend and another family hired a recent graduate who was only subbing at this point to come each morning and work with the kids, help with assignments, teach new work, etc.

[meggie t]

This is very interesting. In my state, they would not be considered homeschoolers because the parent has to be responsible for 51% of the teaching time. I’m sure there are ways around that and I certainly have no issue with it.

Our requirement is 50%. They meet 16 hrs per week with the teacher, so just shy of 50% of a public school that meets 6.5 hrs per day. But yes, you are correct that each state has their hourly max of being taught by a teacher other than the parent.