In the Fall of 2021 when everyone was going back to school, we weren't. At least we weren't going back the way everyone else was.
Circa COVID-19 remote learning at its finest.
We have three amazing kids. Our first was identified as gifted when she was pre-K age. Our second has a history of medical complications and needing multiple supportive services, including an IEP in school. She also has Autism. Our youngest is gifted like her big sister, but with the bonus of ADHD. So while our oldest can temper her boredom in a classroom, our youngest doesn't have that superpower.
Our academic journey has been different and distinct for each of our girls, but in the Fall of 2021, it converged for all three kids. It started with our youngest. When we sent her back to school in the spring, we had issues of "School Refusal". She was desperately bored and frustrated. The staying still and being quiet and not having enough to do was wearing on her in the worst way. She started waking up "not feeling well". She struggled to get ready in the morning, utilizing EVERY SINGLE DELAY TACTIC in the book. We were signing her in later and later every day. The school was frustrated with the number of tardies she was accumulating. And because that wasn't enough, she started to learn how to escape the system. She would walk out and return the two blocks home. Thankfully, there is almost always someone home at our house, but this left us beyond frustrated. Summer vacation couldn't arrive soon enough.
Our middle child got a g-tube in May of 2020 as one of the last pediatric surgeries done in the hospital before they cancelled all but the most necessary of procedures. She was 9 years old and 40 lbs. A year at home after that led to some much needed weight gain and the first 12 month period where she didn't experience a hospitalization. But she was still medically fragile and her pediatrician was not comfortable with her returning to the classroom/school. She was supposed to have a Tutor while she was still at home.
The oldest had been homeschooling for years. She had a brief moment during Covid when she joined in some of the remote classes because it worked with her schedule, but she still very much classified herself as a homeschooler. While home during Covid, she indulged her passion and doubled down on learning. She emerged having made a solid dent in her high school requirements and a readiness to get back out in the world.
As parents, I don't need to tell you that derailed academics were not the only side effects to come out of Covid isolation. We wanted to find solutions to each of their individual needs and give them the best possible chance to be successful as they emerged. We also needed to look for work. Our jobs had suffered during the pandemic and we needed to refocus on stabilizing our careers.
By chance, I happened to see this ad for a place called KaiPod. It was billed as a sort-of one-room schoolhouse type startup for kids that was opening enrollment for the Fall of 2021. We attended a virtual open house and got to hear more. We heard about the great credentials of the teacher. We heard about the cool activities that were planned for the school days. We heard about the flexibility of enrollment options. And we heard about the tuition costs. The conversation we had afterwards was short. It sounded like something worth trying, but was likely cost prohibitive. We moved on to looking for other options.
KaiPod is thriving in many places. If they are near you, check it out!
Amar Kumar, founder of KaiPod, and Annie, his right-hand person, kept us in their thoughts though. As they worked through the working model and building up an inaugural class they reached back out to see how we were faring and if there was a price point that would make it work for us. We hadn't found anything and worked out a way to dip our toes in the water and give it a try.
Our youngest made the leap first. She started attending twice a week as the second enrolled student. Right away the change was massive. She lit up like everything in her world was coming up roses. Everyone in our house noticed, even her sisters.
The second kid to make the leap was the oldest. She asked to try it twice a week, while the youngest wanted an upgrade to five days a week. Little did we know this was our second step on a slippery slope. Our teenager's first love 💕 turned out to be KaiPod. Before we knew it, the middle sister needed to know what all the fuss was about. By January, all three of our kids were attending full-time and we were making it work.
What we found was that the slippery slope that landed them all in KaiPod was the luckiest thing that could have happened to us. By many measures, our kids were doing great. But by the measures that we cared about they were amazing. Each kid was healing in visible and invisible ways. We seemed to get near continuous indictors that our kids were healing and thriving.
The joy that would happen dropping the kids off in the morning. Every morning was like this for years.
We stuck with KaiPod for 3 years and would still be there today if it were possible. Our oldest has successfully moved on to college where she utilizes KaiPod acquired skills daily. We know this is the case because she is kind enough to text us frequently to ask why the other kids don't seem to know how to do a thing she does. Our middle is now in a FOUR YEAR STREAK without a hospitalization. She has also moved the needle on her math from consistently being in the bottom 5th percentile at least a grade level behind (while in public school) to above the 90th percentile on grade level. Her reading moved from nonexistent to at least two years above grade level. Our youngest is a spitfire of accomplishment. More importantly, she is happy. She doesn't run off. It has never crossed her mind. And all of this is reason enough to know that we stumbled into a perfect fit, but these three kids had to watch their mom go through treatment for two separate instances of breast cancer during that time.
This Spring, through no fault of its own, KaiPod had to make the difficult decision to close the Newton, MA location (They have many other locations still going and thriving). Our hearts broke. Collectively as a family we were adrift. Our perfect solution would no longer be available. That wasn't going to work. I couldn't let that stand. There had to be something comparable. So I set off to criss-cross the state and find the place that could be our new academic home. I called, talked to, and visited so many places. Miles and miles later, the continuous disappointment started to wear on me. I couldn't find that elusive thing. I got close a few times, but it was never the same. Then I was laid off from my job and decided to solve the problem.
Kalexedy Learning Center is the rebirth of the place that for three years had been so vital for our family. With an amazing degree of support from Amar Kumar and the team at KaiPod we have managed to bring forth what we think are the best elements of what made it great. We are so excited to bring this slice of heaven to Framingham, MA and the local families. We are so excited that all three of our kids came together this summer to help us make this happen. We are overjoyed that when the kids went "back to school" this fall, it was to the familiar. It was familiar to them and it was familiar to us. We still get to have that feeling that we know each morning they are in heading to the place that gives them the greatest opportunity to be their most successful and happy selves. That piece-of-mind has made this crazy journey worth it.
Couple of our kids that found the time this summer to help us transform the space. They were very quick to redirect any plans that didn't maintain the vision of what they had previously.
I don't know how you found your way here. I don't know what you have experienced that has sent you looking for something else. What I do know is that we have designed Kalexedy to be the thing that we would wish for our own kids. Very likely, there is something here that will provide that magical something for your child(ren). So this is our invitation to come visit. Come join us on Friday afternoons from noon to 3:00pm to see the space, meet the teacher, and say hi to my kids (if you can get them to tear themselves away from their latest activity😜). Bring your kids and maybe you can witness the magic.
Comments