How It Works

How Online Elementary School Works

Who can attend?

The Lone Star Online Academy at Roscoe (LSOA) elementary school program serves students in grades K–5 who reside in Texas.

What are the costs?

Because LSOA is part of the public school system, it’s tuition-free. Enrolled families receive the K12 curriculum, and eligible families may receive a loaner computer, printer, and internet stipend.

What is 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 K–5 is 4–6 hours a day. The initial 4–8 weeks can be intensive, as your family settles into a routine.

Grades preK–2: Parent/Learning Coach daily involvement is critical and approximately 10–15 percent of this time is online.

Grades 3–5: Students begin to have increased independence, but parent/Learning Coach involvement is essential for about 70–80 percent of school time and approximately 15–25 percent of this time is online.

Mother and son image

Mastering Lessons

In the elementary grades, students are required to show mastery of each lesson by achieving 80 percent or better on all lesson assessments. If your child is having difficulty mastering a lesson, let their homeroom teacher know as soon as possible. Teachers offer many support sessions to help students gain mastery.

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.

Attendance

Learning Coaches log attendance Monday through Friday. But academic progress can also be achieved during the weekends. Kindergarten through–5th grade students will spend about 4–7 hours on schoolwork per school day.

Grades K–2

About 4–5 hours of schoolwork 5 days per week

Grades 3–5

About 5–7 hours of schoolwork 5 days per week

Assessments

Students are required to take the following tests:

  • Course lesson assessments
  • Course unit assessments
  • Semester assessments
  • Diagnostic and formative assessments to measure growth and mastery of grade-level standards

State Testing

LSOA students must comply with all Texas-mandated testing requirements, which will require them to travel to in-person locations.