Nearly 33 percent of young students staying remote at Seattle Public Schools
SEATTLE - Tuesday marked day two for Seattle Public Schools welcoming students back into school buildings and data shows that the majority of families have opted for in-person learning.
More than 16,800 preschool and elementary-aged kids are back inside the classroom in the largest school district in the state. But more than 8,100 students are remaining in remote learning.
For some families choosing remote, it has little to do with concerns over COVID-19 transmission.
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Mom Ashley Hanson says SPS is only offering less than 3 hours of in person learning 4 days a week. She says the short window is logistically more challenging than helpful for her family’s schedule.
"I don’t feel like a two and half hour solution is realistic time frame for working parents," Hanson said.
But the main reason why Hanson is opting to stay remote is because they're seeing significant results from a pandemic pod.
"We are very fortunate that we have found a system that has worked for us during this really hard time," Hanson said.
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Hanson and two other families formed their own village early on in the pandemic, each family taking turns hosting 4 kids.
"We found an incredible facilitator she is a young lady," Hanson said.
It was hard at first to organize all the parts needed for the pod but Hanson says it was worth it.
The families managed to hire a person who is not only overseeing remote learning for their kids but also adds to it.
"She’s really able to help them with their spelling and writing," Hanson said.
The Seattle mom says she pays around $1,000 a month for her share to keep the pandemic pod running.
She can’t wait for things to get back to normal for the next school semester, but for now,
the school of 4 will be the way her daughter remembers her kindergarten year.
Hanson’s daughter belongs to Montlake Elementary. SPS says 177 students are back in person at that school with 32 students remaining remote.
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