DEEP DIVE: Small Schools, Big Difference

By Grant Hewitt | Read in browser

The small school that changed my life looked nothing like a typical school.

I didn't know until my thirties that a church had paid for a large portion of my early education. I have a learning disability—nothing debilitating, but enough to make traditional classrooms really hard. My mother, a single mom, looked for something different. Then colleagues told her about a private school run by a local church that helped kids with special needs—what today might be called a microschool.

I went. I thrived. That small school changed my trajectory.

Years later, when I was working to help Nevada bring forward the first universal education savings account in the country, I was fighting for other families to have the choices my mother had found for me. The courts shut it down in 2015 before a single family could use it.

But here's what I didn't expect: that policy failure created space for something better.

Don Soifer and his now-wife Ashley didn't pack up and go home when the ESA died. They started hearing from people asking, "Can you help me start a microschool?" What began as a one-off project became a hub supporting over 20 schools across Nevada. North Las Vegas partnered with their nonprofit to run microschools in rec centers and libraries—the city provides space, meals, and IT support while nonprofits provide the teaching model.

At the Martin Luther King Jr. Senior Center, most students arrived two or more grade levels behind. The program delivered 125% academic growth compared to typical gains. The all-in cost? Between one-quarter and one-third of the district's per-pupil spending.

Today, there are 1.5 million students attending microschools nationwide—the same number enrolled in Catholic schools. And no two schools look exactly alike. Some meet in vans that move around the city. Others use farms as their classroom. Many only gather 2-3 days per week. You'll find classical academies teaching Latin next to nature-based Montessori pods, faith communities next to secular project-based programs.

Take Prenda, the nation's largest microschool network. About half their guides are parents—no teaching credential required. Just a desire to create something better. And it's working. Kids are mastering grade-level material at rates traditional schools can't match. But here's what matters more: students who used to drag themselves to school now actually want to be there. Parents who spent years advocating for their kids in broken systems finally feel heard.

The data backs it up—76% of microschool parents are satisfied compared to 42% in traditional schools (a 25-year low). But numbers only tell half the story.

Read the complete guide to finding and starting a microschool

PODCAST HIGHLIGHT: The Principal Who Unschooled Six Kids

By Ela Richmond | Read in browser

Dave Hoffman spent decades enforcing school rules as a public school teacher and administrator. Then he broke every one, "unschooling" his own kids.

His oldest daughter attended the local high school for just two hours a day—yet was still voted homecoming queen. She toured with a choir, competed in pageants, did debate. His sons played sports, learned welding, knocked out college math online. The family moved repeatedly, treating geography like curriculum. "All of it counted as education," Dave told me.

When other parents warned that unschooling would leave "gaps," Dave had a stock answer: "Everybody has gaps. The question is, can they learn and can they solve problems?"

His son wasn't great at textbook math. Today, he calculates laser-level excavation for construction companies—slopes, grades, elevation to the inch.

Meanwhile, Dave manages adults who can't think past, "What do you want me to do on this?" They were trained to check boxes, not create solutions.

Read the full interview | Listen to the podcast

TRENDS OF THE WEEK

Employers Care More About Skills Than Diplomas—But HR Departments Haven't Caught Up

James Isabele had 15 years of manufacturing experience and every certification required for the job. The interviewer loved him—until HR asked for his "state-issued homeschool diploma." Turns out: In most states, there's no such thing. HSLDA sent a letter explaining the situation, and James eventually got the job.

Stop Measuring Teaching, Start Measuring Learning

Scott Ellis (MasteryTrack founder) built data dashboards that reveal uncomfortable truths. Teachers implementing mastery tracking discover they've been "wasting time"—students who passed tests have critical missing foundations, but can't get support because "the class needs to move on." Data shows where students actually are, not where the calendar says they should be. (Source: AEI interview with Rick Hess)

Microschools Now Match Catholic School Enrollment

1.5 million students are enrolled across 95,000 microschools nationwide—matching total Catholic school enrollment. Parent satisfaction: 76% in microschools vs. 42% in traditional schools (a 25-year low). Part-time schedules (2-3 days/week) are the norm, not the exception. (Source: EdChoice, Gallup)

When Policy Fails, Grassroots Succeeds—The Nevada Model

Nevada passed the nation's first universal education savings account in 2015. The Supreme Court blocked it before a single family could use it. But that policy failure created space for something different: Don Soifer and Ashley partnered with North Las Vegas to run microschools in rec centers and libraries. The city provides space, meals, and IT; nonprofits provide teaching. At the MLK Senior Center microschool, 75% of students arrived 2+ grade levels behind and delivered 125% academic growth—at one-quarter to one-third of district per-pupil spending. Now 20+ microschools across Nevada. (Source: National Microschooling Center, EdChoice podcast)

Half of Prenda Microschool Guides Have No Teaching Credentials

Prenda has helped over 1,000 adults start microschools serving nearly 10,000 students. About half are parents without education degrees. Results: 18-percentage-point increase in grade-level proficiency, student intrinsic motivation jumped from 27% to 62%, and positive feelings about school leaped from 36% to 86%. 

TOOLS OF THE WEEK

Mastery-Based Learning Platforms

Khan Academy - The original free mastery-based platform. Students can't advance until they demonstrate proficiency. Covers everything from early math through college calculus and science.

IXL Learning - SmartScore system requires consistent correct answers. Score of 100 = complete mastery.

Math-U-See - Mastery-based curriculum with hands-on manipulatives, designed for parents who aren't math experts.

Beast Academy - Comic-based math (grades 2-5 only, not reading); makes kids actually want to read math problems.

ALEKS - AI creates personalized knowledge maps showing exactly what students know and are ready to learn next.

Teaching Textbooks - This tool took Dave Hoffman's son from "I'm bad at math" to passing college algebra at 17. Self-paced with automated grading.

So You Want to Start (or Join) a Microschool?

Prenda - The largest microschool network in America. Complete curriculum, training, ongoing support. No degree required. Guides run schools of 5-10 students, typically 3-4 days/week.

Acton Academy - 300+ schools globally using quest-based learning. Students work on 5-7 week deep dives into topics like entrepreneurship or robotics. No grades, ever.

Primer - Mornings on core academics (100 min each for math and reading), afternoons on "earnest work"—passion projects like designing apps or building businesses.

KaiPod Learning - In-person coaching paired with families' choice of online curriculum. Catalyst program increased aspiring founder success rate from 10% to 60%.

National Microschooling Center - Research hub, directory, connections to state incubators offering startup support. Doesn't require adopting a specific model.

Education Innovators - Founded by 14-year public school veteran Jon England to help teachers create their dream schools. Supported over 100 launches.

Flexible School Options

BYU Independent Study - Where Dave Hoffman works. 215 courses, nine languages, micro-credentials. University-backed without rigid schedules.

Record-Keeping & Diploma Resources

HomeschoolDiploma.com - Professional diploma printing starting at $34.99. Includes school name, student name, graduation statement, signatures, optional seal.

HSLDA - Home School Legal Defense Association provides legal guidance when employers don't understand homeschool credentials. Helped James Isabele when an employer asked for a diploma that doesn't exist.

Canva - Free DIY diploma templates (search "homeschool diploma"). Professional results you can print at home.

PARTING THOUGHT

"In a world full of no, we're a plane full of yes." – Southwest Airlines napkin

Dave Hoffman, a former public school administrator who now works at BYU Independent Study, keeps this napkin on his desk. It reminds him that every fence has a reason—and sometimes the reason is weak.

Yesterday, he broke policy to give a 14-year-old foster child a scholarship for a university course they weren't technically eligible for. "If this kid can take one class and feel confident, maybe they'll change their life."

Question the fences. Build gates. Default to yes.