Learning Pods & Microschools
Curriculum and Credit for Learning Pods and Microschools
One lesson for the whole pod. One transcript for each student.
Your leader teaches; we fill the gaps. Teach your group from free, standards-aligned SVHS Lessons. When a student needs credit, they take that subject as a self-paced SVHS course, graded by credentialed teachers, with an official transcript from an accredited school.
Free lesson plans, grades 6–12
$125 per semester course
A transcript for each student
Watch: how families and groups use SVHS
Who this is for
Built for Groups That Learn Together
You chose to learn outside a traditional school on purpose. SVHS adds what a group can't easily issue on its own: credit, official transcripts, and, for some microschools, an accredited diploma pathway.
Learning Pods
Several families share the teaching, often with a hired tutor. You need ready-to-teach lessons for group sessions, and a way for each student to earn credit in the subjects that count.
Microschools
A paid leader runs a small, independent learning community. You need curriculum, credit for your students, and possibly an accredited diploma pathway you can offer under your own brand.
How it works
Teach the Group. Credit Each Student.
1
Teach the Group
Your leader teaches an SVHS Lesson to the whole group in person, using its ready-made activities and quiz. Each lesson covers one standard, for grades 6–12.
Free
2
Credit Each Student
A student who needs credit enrolls in that subject's SVHS course individually. Credentialed SVHS teachers grade the work, and SVHS issues that student their own official transcript.
$125 per semester course
3
A Diploma Pathway
A student who wants SVHS to award the diploma can enroll in the SVHS Academy. A microschool that wants to offer an accredited diploma pathway itself can apply to become an SVHS Certified Learning Center.
See the options for microschools →
See each program
Free SVHS Lessons
Ready-to-Teach Lessons for Group Sessions
Every SVHS Lesson is built around a single standard, so your leader can plan a session in minutes. There's no account, no paywall and no advertising. Search the library by standard code, topic or keyword.
Lessons cover the Common Core State Standards for math and English language arts, the Next Generation Science Standards, the C3 Framework for Social Studies, and the National Core Arts Standards.
Every lesson page includes
- A lesson plan: objectives, prior knowledge, procedure, differentiation and assessment guidance
- Three to five group activities, with timings and setup
- Diagrams for the key concepts
- A homework assignment with a rubric
- A 20-question quiz with answers and explanations
- Common misconceptions, answered
- Related standards to teach before, alongside and after
Online high school courses
Your Leader Guides the Learning. Our Teachers Grade the Work.
Group sessions build understanding. When a student needs credit that colleges recognize, they enroll in an SVHS course: more than 60 semester courses across core subjects and electives.
One enrollment, one transcript
Each student enrolls in the course they need and receives their own official transcript when they complete it. SVHS bills each enrollment separately.
Credentialed teachers grade every assignment
Students get feedback from a subject expert, so your leader doesn't have to be an expert in every subject the group studies.
Self-paced, with no semester dates
Students start the day they enroll and can finish a course in as little as 30 days or take up to 12 months, so the course fits your group's rhythm.
Video-based and open around the clock
Students can pause and replay lessons, and work during group time or at home.
Optional one-to-one tutoring
A student can book a 30-minute online session with a credentialed teacher for $60. See tutoring.
Pay with education savings funds
SVHS is an approved provider in the Arizona, New Hampshire, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming programs. See the full list.
For microschool leaders
Offer More Than Individual Courses
Become an SVHS Certified Learning Center
Offer your students an accredited U.S. diploma pathway under your own brand. SVHS provides the curriculum, the platform, the teachers of record, the transcript and the diploma. Your microschool keeps its brand, its business and its students, and provides in-person support.
There's no setup, franchise or territory fee, and certified centers earn referral commissions on the enrollments they generate. Tuition for SVHS coursework is billed directly by SVHS to the family.
Certification starts with a candidate period and readiness standards. The decision to certify rests with SVHS, and certification is reviewed periodically.
Registered as a private school?
If your microschool is registered as a private school, has more than 30 students, and wants a full online platform for its own teachers, under its own name, talk to the AlwaysOnline team. AlwaysOnline gives your school SVHS's course catalog and technology platform under your brand.
Credit, transcripts & diplomas
How SVHS Credit Fits Your Group
SVHS is the school of record for the SVHS courses a student completes, and only those courses. SVHS issues an official transcript for each one.
The student's homeschool, or the school they're enrolled in, adds that transcript to its own records and awards the diploma when its requirements are met. If a student wants SVHS to award the diploma, that comes through the SVHS Academy.
Teaching middle schoolers?
SVHS Lessons cover grades 6–8, so younger learners can join group sessions today. SVHS courses are high school courses, and most high schools do not accept credit earned while a student is enrolled in middle school. Enroll students in courses once they have left middle school.
Homeschool rules vary by state. Families in your group should check their own state's requirements. Our Homeschooling by State guides are a good place to start.
FAQ
Learning Pod and Microschool Questions
Do we need to sign up or sign an agreement to use SVHS Lessons?
No. SVHS Lessons are free, with no account, no ads and no trial. Use them as often as you like for your pod or microschool.
Do the free lessons count for credit?
No. Lessons help your group learn a standard. Credit comes from SVHS courses, which credentialed SVHS teachers grade and which appear on an official SVHS transcript.
Can our whole group enroll in one course together?
Each student who needs credit enrolls individually, at $125 per semester course, and receives their own transcript. Your group can still learn the topic together in person using the free lessons.
Does SVHS organize pods or connect students with each other?
No. Pods and microschools meet in person and are run by their own leaders. SVHS provides the lessons, courses, teachers and transcripts; it doesn't form or organize groups, or connect students online.
Can our microschool offer an accredited diploma?
A microschool that wants to offer an accredited U.S. diploma pathway under its own brand can apply to the SVHS Certified Learning Center program. Students enroll in the SVHS Academy, SVHS teachers grade the work, and SVHS issues the transcript and diploma. Certification is decided by SVHS and reviewed periodically.
Who awards the diploma for students taking individual courses?
The student's homeschool, or the school they're enrolled in. SVHS issues an official transcript for each SVHS course completed, which that homeschool or school adds to its own records. An SVHS diploma comes only through the SVHS Academy.
Can families pay with ESA or education savings account funds?
Yes, in several states. SVHS is an approved provider in these programs:
- Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA)
- New Hampshire Education Freedom Account (EFA)
- Utah Fits All Scholarship
- West Virginia Hope Scholarship
- Wyoming Education Savings Account
If your state's program isn't listed, contact us and we'll tell you whether SVHS is an approved provider where you live.
Can middle school students take SVHS courses?
SVHS courses are high school courses, and most high schools do not accept credit earned while a student is enrolled in middle school. Middle schoolers can join group sessions using free SVHS Lessons, which cover grades 6–8, and move into courses once they have left middle school.