CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A mother who home-schools her three children said Monday families new to home schooling should research the resources available to them.

Any family that wants to home-school their children must file a notice of intent with the North Carolina Department of Administration through an online portal. Since the portal opened for the 2020-2021 school year July 1, it has been inaccessible due to the volume of requests. The backlog began just a day after state officials said they would delay a final announcement regarding how schools will approach the new year amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tracy Burkett has always home-schooled her children; ages 13, nine, and six. She said parents shouldn't panic if they can't get their application in right away. She said the office that handles home school applications is very small and will need a few days to work through the backlog.

Burkett, who runs the North Charlotte Secular Homeschool Community, said a whole host of resources exist to allow parents to tailor their children's curriculum. She said parents new to home schooling should know it usually involves a lot more field trips and group activities than what families experienced this spring.

“Don't feel like your experience from March or April is going to be what home schooling is like,” she says. “There's a lot out there that's different from what we did.”

Home schooling parents are allowed under state law to home-school one family in addition to their own. If you are unable to supervise your children while home schooling due to work responsibilities, Burkett said this is one way to make home schooling work.

The Department of Administration did not respond to a request for comment for this story.