We at Illinois PTA are big fans of National Public Radio’s (NPR) Life Kit podcasts and articles, especially the parenting-focused ones. Now, as we head into an uncertain back-to-school time, they have released a 15-minute podcast and article on 20 Questions to Help Decide What’s Best for Your Kids (and You) This School Year.

Whether your school district is headed back to in-person classes, online-only classes, some mixture of the two, or offering families a choice of how the child will attend, not to mention whether after-school programs will be running, it’s hard to know which choice is the right one for your child, your family, and you. The 20 questions from NPR don’t directly provide you with what choice is right for your family, but they will help you think through your options and perhaps suggest some you hadn’t thought of.

The questions are grouped into four categories:

  • Questions about you, your work, and your situation.
  • Questions about your household.
  • Questions about your kid(s) and their needs.
  • Questions about your community and the resources that might be available to you.

Listen to the podcast or read the article to help you figure out what will work for your child and your family this school year.

Photo courtesy of the US Army.