ElementaryElementary
Kindergarten
A gentle first school year: phonics, numbers and learning how school works.
- Length
- Full school year, three terms
- Format
- Online Live
- Tuition
- $1,499 a year
See this grade7 subjects
Winter term places open for January 2027
An online school your child actually attends.
Kindergarten through grade 12, taught live by subject teachers in small classes. A real timetable, set work between lessons, and a report every term.
- Live classes, not recorded videos
- Small classes with subject teachers
- Termly reports in the parent portal
School levels
Three levels. Thirteen grades. One school.
Each grade is a full school year of live classes, with the teaching and the amount of independence the age calls for.
Elementary School (K-5)
Kindergarten through grade 5. Reading, writing, mathematics, science and social studies in short live lessons, with a home learning partner alongside every younger child.
See these gradesMiddle School (6-8)
Grades 6 to 8. Subject teachers, a full timetable and the study habits that make high school work: note-taking, deadlines and independent reading.
See these gradesHigh School (9-12)
Grades 9 to 12. Core subjects, electives and advanced courses, with transcripts each term and guidance for college applications in grades 11 and 12.
See these gradesPopular entry points
Where families usually join
Any grade can be joined at the start of a term. These are the years families ask about most.
ElementaryElementary
Grade 3
Where reading to learn replaces learning to read.
- Length
- Full school year, three terms
- Format
- Online Live
- Tuition
- $2,999 a year
See this grade8 subjects
Middle SchoolMiddle School
Grade 6
A full timetable, subject teachers, and the study habits to carry them.
- Length
- Full school year, three terms
- Format
- Online Live
- Tuition
- $4,499 a year
See this grade8 subjects
High SchoolHigh School
Grade 9
High school begins: credits, transcripts and work that counts.
- Length
- Full school year, three terms
- Format
- Online Live
- Tuition
- $5,999 a year
See this grade7 subjects
High SchoolHigh School
Grade 12
Finish the transcript, submit the applications, and leave ready for what is next.
- Length
- Full school year, three terms
- Format
- Online Live
- Tuition
- $7,499 a year
See this grade7 subjects
Why families choose us
School, taught properly, at a distance
Online school works when it keeps what matters about a classroom: a teacher who knows the child, a timetable, and work that gets marked.
A teacher, live, every day
Lessons are taught in real time by the teacher who knows your child, not assembled from recordings.
Small classes
Small enough that a child can ask a question, and that a quiet one cannot hide at the back for a term.
Work that gets marked
Assignments come back with comments, not just a score, and the teacher says what to do differently next time.
Parents kept in the loop
Attendance, assignments and teacher comments are in the parent portal. If something slips, you hear it from us early.
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Grades, kindergarten to 12
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Terms in the school year
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Teaching weeks a year
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Classes taught live
Figures reflect the current Pioneer Academy timetable and school calendar.
The school day
Mornings in class. Afternoons at work.
A real timetable, with breaks away from the screen and an afternoon for reading and set work.
Live lessons in the morning
About three hours a day in elementary, four in middle school, five including early afternoon in high school. All Eastern Time.
Breaks that leave the screen
Scheduled on purpose. Teachers will say when a child needs to get up and move rather than push through.
Set work between lessons
Reading, practice and assignments. In middle and high school these carry deadlines that appear in the parent portal.
Help without waiting a week
Teacher office hours each week, plus a learning support lead for students who need something adjusted.
Progress and support
You will know how your child is doing
Not once a year, and not only when something has gone wrong.
Assessed each term
Termly papers and coursework produce a grade, an effort mark and a comment that tells you something you did not already know.
Support planned, not improvised
Our learning support lead reviews every new student and agrees adjustments with the family where they are needed.
Guidance in the senior years
From grade 10, course choices, admissions tests, applications and funding, with a counsellor who is straight about what is realistic.
Teachers
The people who will teach your child
Subject teachers, a learning support lead, a counsellor and a principal you can actually reach.
Marta Alvarez
Head of Elementary
Marta taught kindergarten and first grade for eleven years before moving online, and she designs the elementary timetable around how long a young child can actually concentrate. She leads the weekly reading check that every elementary child sits.
Jonah Fischer
Elementary Teacher, Science and Mathematics
Jonah makes science happen at the kitchen table: his lessons use what families already have at home, and every investigation ends with the child explaining what they found. He also runs elementary number practice.
Priya Menon
Learning Support Lead
Priya works with students who need something adjusted: more time, different materials, a quieter room, or a plan agreed with the family. She reviews every new student’s placement notes and checks in through the year.
Daniel Okafor
Head of Mathematics
Daniel teaches pre-algebra through calculus and is unusually patient with the middle bit, where most students decide whether they are "a maths person". He sets the school’s end-of-term papers and moderates the marking.
Parent voices
What parents tell us
“Two moves in two years meant two new schools and a lot of starting over. Here the teacher stayed the same, the timetable stayed the same, and for the first time my daughter finished a school year in the same class she started it in.”
Rebecca T.
Parent, Grade 4
“I was sceptical about live online classes holding a twelve year old’s attention. What actually changed things was the weekly feedback: I could see what he had handed in, what was missing, and what the teacher had said about it.”
Arjun M.
Parent, Grade 7
“Training hours made a normal school day impossible. The morning timetable fits around it, and the counsellor has been honest with us about which colleges are realistic rather than telling us what we wanted to hear.”
Fatima B.
Parent, Grade 11
Reports and records
What you get at the end of each term
A report card per term and a running transcript for high school students, both available in the parent portal and as a PDF you can send on.
- A grade and an effort mark for every subject
- A teacher comment that says what to do next
- Attendance and assignment completion for the term
- A high school transcript that follows the student year to year
Pioneer Academy is not an accredited school and is working toward accreditation. Our reports and transcripts are school-issued, so please check with your district, school or college that they will accept them.
How enrolment works
Four steps, about a week
- 1
Send an enquiry
A parent or guardian tells us the grade, the time zone and anything we should know. Ten minutes.
- 2
Talk to admissions
A call about your child, the timetable and whether we are the right school for them. We will say if we are not.
- 3
Placement check
The most recent school report, plus a short check in English and mathematics so your child starts in the right place.
- 4
Enrol and pay the first term
Sign the enrolment agreement, pay the first term, and get the timetable, book list and portal login before day one.
Term dates
When you can join
Places open at the start of each term, subject to space in the grade. Applications close about three weeks before a term begins.
| School level | Term begins | Apply by | Status | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elementary School (K-5) | January 5, 2027 | December 11, 2026 | Winter term places open | Apply → |
| Middle School (6-8) | January 5, 2027 | December 11, 2026 | Winter term places open | Apply → |
| High School (9-12) | January 5, 2027 | December 11, 2026 | Limited places | Apply → |
| Elementary School (K-5) | March 29, 2027 | March 12, 2027 | Spring term places open | Apply → |
| Middle School (6-8) | March 29, 2027 | March 12, 2027 | Spring term places open | Apply → |
| High School (9-12) | August 30, 2027 | July 30, 2027 | 2027-28 enrolment opens | Apply → |
Questions parents ask
Frequently asked questions
What is Pioneer Academy?
Pioneer Academy is an online school for kindergarten through grade 12. Students take their school day with us: live classes taught by subject teachers, set work between lessons, termly reports and a school transcript. Teaching is in English and follows the school year, three terms from late August to June.
Is Pioneer Academy accredited?
No. We are not an accredited school, and we are working toward accreditation; we will publish the outcome when there is one and we will not claim it before then. Our report cards and transcripts are school-issued, so a district, school or college may or may not accept them. Please confirm with whoever will receive the record before you enrol.
Which grades can my child join?
Every grade from kindergarten through grade 12. Children entering kindergarten should turn 5 by 1 September of the school year. For other grades we look at the most recent school report and run a short placement check in English and mathematics, so your child starts in the right place.
What does tuition cost?
Tuition is per student, per school year: $1,499 for kindergarten, and $500 more for each grade above it, so grade 12 is $7,499. It can be paid in full or in three term payments. Tuition covers live classes, teaching materials and the parent portal; books for the year are listed in the enrolment pack.
When are classes, and what if we are in another time zone?
Classes are live, on weekdays, in the morning Eastern Time for elementary and middle school and into the early afternoon for high school. Families abroad do enrol, but check the timetable with admissions first: a class at 9am Eastern is the middle of the night in some places, and we would rather say so before you pay.
How do you keep parents informed?
Every enrolled family has a parent portal account showing attendance, assignments, teacher comments and termly reports. Teachers contact parents directly when something needs attention rather than waiting for the report, and you can book a meeting with any teacher through the portal.
Ask us about your child
Send a few details and an admissions advisor will reply within one school day.
Take the next step
Thinking about the next school year?
Look through the grades, or talk to admissions about your child. A call takes twenty minutes, costs nothing, and we will tell you honestly if we are not the right school for them.