I decided halfway through my senior year of high school to become a teacher because my history/government teacher ignited my love for learning. On a very sad and unfortunate note, this same teacher engaged in highly inappropriate behavior that had no place in the classroom. This dark side of education is just one reason I am so fiercely supportive of school choice, particularly homeschooling and “custom schooling.”
I walked away from the traditional classroom in 2016 after having taught in traditional, charter, private, and home schools beginning in 1989. The last school I taught at was the best I had ever worked for, but it was still hampered by senseless regulations enforced by the state of California, primarily those dictating students’ math classes based on the year they were born (their “grade level”) rather than on need or ability.
In 2018, at the suggestion of a dear friend, I began teaching live online math classes to homeschooled students, most of whom paid me using independent study charter school funds. I began with a sixth-grade class, added seventh the year after that, then eighth and Algebra in the following years.
Students, for the most part, can take a math class with me based on their needs rather than their age. It is incredibly rewarding to see these students succeed in math for the first time in years—if not for the first time in their lives. Many have gone from hating math to loving it. I’ve even had parents tell me that they are learning from me, too!
I also love the efficiency of what I do. I spend virtually all of my working time actually teaching—not dealing with bureaucracy, discipline, or the other issues that dominated my workdays in a traditional classroom.
When homeschooling my own sons, I used a wonderful curriculum called Saxon Math. Saxon was innovative, using an incremental and distributed approach. Unfortunately, Saxon is no longer aligned with state standards, meaning students who use it may encounter content on state tests that they haven’t yet been introduced to. I used Saxon’s approach when I wrote my own curriculum, breaking concepts down into easily mastered increments. I also created fill-in-the-blank notes that allow my students to focus on learning the concepts rather than worrying about writing everything down.
My classes are live, but I also record each session so students can review lessons for relearning a concept or for times when they miss class due to illness, field trips, or family events. Students who struggle can also watch the recordings before class to get their notes written down in advance.
EVERY child deserves the ability to choose their educator or educators. Even in highly regarded public schools, there are teachers who are not providing the best instruction, and it is wrong that students are “locked into” those classes until the next semester or school year. My math program doesn’t work for every child, and that’s okay. Parents are free to withdraw their child from my class and try something else. The free market is the answer to America’s education problems.
Laura’s website, mathwithmrsfish.com, includes samples of her curriculum and information about her program’s structure.
