How It Works
How Online Elementary School Works
Who can attend?
The Colorado Destinations Career Academy (CODCA) elementary program serves students in grades 4–5 who reside in Colorado.
What are the costs?
Because CODCA is a public school program, it's tuition-free. Enrolled families receive the K12 curriculum, and qualified students may receive a loaner computer and printer.
What's my role as a parent?
As a parent, you (or another responsible adult you choose) serve as your child's Learning Coach. You'll work with your child's teacher to help record student attendance, monitor mastery of online lessons and assessments, and review student work.
Parent/Learning Coach involvement is vital to your child's success, especially at the elementary level. The typical Learning Coach time commitment in grades 4–5 is 4 to 6 hours a day. Parent/Learning Coach involvement is essential for about 70–80% of school time, and approximately 15–25% of this time is online. The initial 4–8 weeks can be intensive as your family settles into a routine.
Attendance
Attendance is logged Monday through Friday for a typical week; however, academic progress can be achieved during the weekends or holidays as well. Students in grades 4–5 are expected to spend approximately 5 to 7 hours on schoolwork per school day, five days per week.
What will my child study?
Coursework is a mix of online and hands-on work, catering to a wide variety of learning styles. Unit and course assessments are built into each subject, and easy-to-use online planning and progress tools keep you and your student on track.
Elementary school students take courses in the core subjects listed below. They also take a self-guided elective course in music or a world language.
Working with Your Teacher
Teachers provide individual and small group assistance via online synchronous sessions called "Class Connects." Students are expected to attend all required Class Connects and meet with their teacher to receive course assistance, tutoring, and instruction. Class Connects vary by grade level and are scheduled by your teacher.
Mastering Lessons
In the elementary grades, students are required to show mastery of each lesson by achieving 80% or better on all lesson assessments. If your child has difficulty mastering a lesson, let their homeroom teacher know as soon as possible. Teachers offer many support sessions to help students gain mastery.
Assessments
Our testing is purposeful and meaningful and drives our instructional practices to best serve the individual needs of your child. The school year begins with benchmark testing to measure students' baseline knowledge. These results will drive their personalized instruction. Mid-year and end-of-year benchmark testing measure each student's growth toward mastering all state standards.
State Testing
Students must comply with all Colorado-mandated testing requirements.
