So, after a lot of thought, you have come to the decision that a charter school is the best option for your child. With that part decided, you now have to decide which of them is going to meet the needs of your child the best.
There are few options for you and we will take a look here on how to choose one for your child.
Charter Schools Are Not Created Equally
There are of course a lot of advantages to using a charter school, as opposed to public-schools, but each is different and they are going to vary greatly depending on what they can offer. Take the time to take a look at reviews to see what the other parents have been saying.
Depending on where you actually are within the country, one example that you could take a look at is the Arizona Charter School AMS who are one of the best in the area, with more than 600 5* parent reviews. A simple Google search of the charter schools in your area will pull in a variety of results for you to look at just like this one.
Online charter schools may well be the perfect solution, for both parent and child, but you should still consider other options too if you are able to.
Head For The Website Of The Charter School
Just about every single charter school will have a website to call its own, that or a dedicated section on another site. You will be able to source a lot of information from here such as location, contact details, grades that they offer and administrator information. As you read through the information you should take notes for asking questions about them later.
Not every site will have a testimonials section, but many charter schools will have a Facebook presence which may well contain comments and reviews if the website does not.
Call The Charter School
Using the notes that you have taken, create a list of questions that you want to ask. The next step is to call the charter school. Most won’t mind an email, but the personal touch can go a long way. If nobody is available to take your call for a ‘chat’ (many schools don’t have year-round staff) then leave a message requesting a callback.
When you do get to speak to somebody, what was the impression that you were left with? Everyone knows that the first impression is important so give it some close thought. You may want to arrange a tour too if are able, so you can see exactly where your child will be going before you make a decision.
It’s very easy these days to take a look at a school from a service such as Google Maps too, and this will give you the exact location and an exact view. Using this kind of software, you may even be able to get an impression of the neighborhood where the school is; is there a freeway close by, an airport, do some of the surrounding buildings look worse for wear? These are all legitimate considerations when making a decision like this.
Follow our advice when choosing a charter school
