[CharterSchools] Physicians recommend schools be more flexible! LACA offers solution

[charterschools at LACharter.org]

Is your Louisianateen constantly late for school?
Physicianssay: Be flexible. 
Louisiana ConnectionsAcademy offers solution
    

                                                                                                       

 
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is condoningyour teen’s late sleeping habits. A recent AAP study says adolescents who don’tget enough sleep often suffer physical and mental health problems, an increasedrisk of automobile accidents and a decline in academic performance.


So what’s a parent to do to get that teen toschool on time?


Louisiana Connections Academy, a public virtualcharter school, solves that problem because a teenager logs on from home andattends class from their home computer. Flexibility is what it’s all about,said Principal Shuanessy Matthews.


According to the AAP study, getting enough sleepeach night can be hard for teens whose natural sleep cycles make it difficultfor them to fall asleep before 11 p.m. – and who face a first-period class at7:30 a.m. or earlier the next day. 
            

          Principal Matthews saidvirtual schooling offers scheduling flexibility to middle and high schoolers.She said many don’t start their first class until 8:30 a.m. and some, who haveacting or athletic schedules, may start even later. 


Louisiana Connections Academy is a free publiccharter school open to 1800 students across the state. Principal Matthews saidthere are still openings for middle and high school students for the 2014-15school year. Students can enroll from every county in the state. 


“The research is clear that adolescents who getenough sleep have a reduced risk of being overweight or suffering depression,are less likely to be involved in automobile accidents, and have better grades,higher standardized test scores and an overall better quality of life,” saidpediatrician Judith Owens, MD, FAAP, lead author of the AAP policy statement,“School Start Times for Adolescents,” published in the September 2014 issue of Pediatrics. “Studies have shown thatdelaying early school start times is one key factor that can help adolescentsget the sleep they need to grow and learn.”
             

LACA parent Elise Felix agrees, saying theflexibility that Louisiana Connections Academy provides allows her son,Tyler, to take part inhis busy, blossoming acting career and gives him time to sleep in after longdays of shooting.
 
“Some days Tyler would wrap upshooting his scenes at 10 or 11 o’clock at night,” said Elise. “It was a bighelp that he could sleep in after those long days of filming. The extra hour ortwo he’d get of rest really helped his focus when he logged in for class.”
 
Principal of Louisiana ConnectionsAcademy Shuanessy Matthews encourages parents who identify with this problem toconsider LACA as an option for their children’s schooling. The school still hasenrollment spots available for kids and more information can be found at www.LouisianaConnectionsAcademy.com
 
To read more about the AAP’s recommendation on delayingstart times of middle and high school, visit http://www.aap.org
 
 
ABOUT LOUISIANACONNECTIONS ACADEMY
(www.LouisianaConnectionsAcademy.com)
 Louisiana Connections Academy is the state’s leading provider ofhigh-quality, free public virtual charter schooling for grades K through 12.Louisiana Connections Academy offers a superior, personalized education forstudents, offered by Louisiana certified teachers, with the freedom andflexibility of an online education that meets the state’s standards. As anonline charter school, students access their lessons anytime, anywhere as longas they have the technology, tools and support of their family. Accountabilityfor meeting high academic student performance is monitored by the non-profitcharter board, Friends of Louisiana Connections Academy, Wade Henderson,President. The charter school is authorized by the Louisiana Board ofElementary and Secondary Education to accept students from any parish in thestate. 1800 students attended for the 2014-2015 school year. School officialsexpanded the school curriculum to include tutoring, summer school, dualenrollment programs and high quality electives, such as e-learning courses atJuilliard. The school is headquartered in Baton Rouge at 8281 Goodwood Blvd.,Ste J, (225) 372-8389. Student field trips, graduation ceremonies,parent-to-parent events and school information sessions are regularly scheduledand promoted at the school website. 


 


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