Most microschools surveyed nationally, 64 percent, meet on a full-time weekly schedule. Of those that do not, half offer part-time/hybrid schedules, and half offer their families a choice between the two.
Schedules are an important example of ways microschools can be flexible in meeting the needs of the families they serve. Microschools that meet on part-time or hybrid schedules are most popular with families following their state's homeschool requirements. In doing so they agree to hold responsibility for their children's learning, and are relying on their microschool to support them in doing so. The ways children pursue their learning on other days varies widely, and frequently include hybrid learning online using content their families choose. One in five microschools offer this part time/hybrid schedule.
Other microschools, about one in six, offer their families their choice of these two scheduling options.
With a growing number of public schools moving to 4-day weekly schedules (reportedly more than 2,100 during the 2024-25 school year and growing since then, especially in more rural communities), this research defined full time as meeting at least four days per week for at least four hours a day.
Scheduling flexibility is often cited by microschool founders who opt to not register with their states as private schools as a primary reason why. Many states require private schools to maintain the same 170+ school days each year as public school systems, and to report student attendance to their state education agency.
As more states have adopted Education Savings Account school choice programs, families have opportunities to "unbundle" and individualize their child's learning programs according to their educational needs. This allows families to curate educational choices rather than be required to select one school of choice as their exclusive provider, while still allowing them to utilize program funds to help pay for their choices. Flexible microschooling schedules embody the spirit of these contemporary models of school choice program by supporting unbundling of educational options to better meet the individual educational needs of each child.