An Armonk woman is devising a plan with like-minded mothers in the community to form a home school co-op as an alternative when schools reopen.

Jackie Walker says the pandemic is centered around personal risks, and sending kids to school is a chance she isn’t willing to take.

"I'm envisioning it to be something like a half-day, or two hours with a professional teacher, either a retired teacher, or a teacher who is choosing to take a leave right now, and just work in a closed pod,” says Walker. “That way they'd only be working with three to six children, that they're social distancing with.”

According to the mother, one option the Byram Hills school district is considering for in-person classes this fall is rotating days, which wouldn't work for the Walker family.

"As a full-time working mom, the idea of rotating days doesn't work because I need my child caretaker to be dedicated to me so that they don't expose me as well,” says Walker.

Lisa Fitzgerald, a New York City science teacher, doesn’t disagree with Walker's home school co-op idea. She says if done with proper safety measures, it could be a good idea.

“I went through a horrible time trying to do remote learning with my students. It just doesn't work, even kids who feel they were successful,” says Fitzgerald. “I know for a fact, I didn’t teach them as well as I would have been in the classroom or in-person situation."

Walker says she hopes the school district will be open to working with her to develop a curriculum for her homeschool co-op or offer an outdoor option for school this fall.