Instructional Schedule

We’ve strengthened the daily learning experience to ensure every student receives the structure, flexibility, and support they need to thrive.

At Georgia Cyber Academy, student support and achievement guide everything we do. As part of our continued commitment to helping every student succeed, we have refined how the school day is organized.

What has evolved is how instructional time is organized within the school day. Live teacher-led instruction, asynchronous learning, personalized learning, and targeted support to strengthen student achievement.

These instructional elements work together to help students build understanding, apply new skills, and receive the support they need to grow.

Why It Matters

Our instructional schedule is built around one clear goal: organizing the school day in a way that helps students master skills, apply their learning, and grow with confidence.

Live Instruction

Students participate in live teacher-led sessions each day. These sessions remain an important part of the learning experience and are carefully structured within the overall schedule. During live instruction, teachers focus on:

Teaching and modeling key skills
Checking for understanding
Engaging students in meaningful discussion
Providing direct, real-time guidance

Asynchronous Learning Time

Students also have scheduled time during the school day to complete teacher-assigned learning activities independently rather than attending a live class session.

During asynchronous learning time, students may:

Work through recorded lessons
Complete guided practice
Engage in digital coursework
Work on teacher-assigned projects or assignments

These activities are designed and assigned by teachers with clear expectations, deadlines, and deliverables. Teachers monitor student engagement, review completed work, and provide feedback to support continued academic progress.

Asynchronous learning is structured instructional time, not optional work or free time.

Personalized Learning Time

Students have dedicated time for teacher-assigned learning activities designed to match their strengths, needs, and skill level.

During these timeframes, students may work through recorded lessons, guided practice, projects, or other assignments selected by their teacher. These activities include clear expectations, deadlines, and checkpoints to support consistent progress.

Much of this work may occur asynchronously, meaning students complete assigned tasks independently within the timeframe established by their teacher.

Teachers monitor progress, review completed work, and provide feedback to support continued learning.

Live instruction and personalized learning work together to support mastery. Teachers introduce and guide new concepts during live sessions, and students apply those skills through teacher-assigned learning activities.

Targeted Small-Group Support (When It’s Needed)

Every student learns differently. Our schedule intentionally builds in time for:

Small-group instruction
Data-informed targeted support
Personalized teacher guidance

This allows teachers to provide additional support or enrichment based on each student’s individual needs.

Teacher-Guided LAPS

What This Means for Your Family

GCA families value clear expectations, consistent routines, and strong support. Learning Coaches support daily routines and check in on assignment completion, especially during personalized learning time. Parents guide, encourage, and help students stay organized and on schedule, but assignments, assessments, and projects must reflect the student’s own understanding and effort. This allows teachers to accurately assess student progress and provide the support students need to grow academically. When students take responsibility for their own learning, they build confidence, independence, and the skills necessary for long-term success.

A Structured, Predictable Day

Students have:

A consistent daily schedule
Live instruction with teachers
Personalized learning timeframes with clear expectations
Ongoing communication from teachers and staff

The school day is structured and predictable, designed to support student growth and engagement.

Structured Flexibility

While GCA follows a structured, teacher-led school day, flexibility is built into the model. Students engage in live instruction and also complete teacher-assigned learning activities independently within established timeframes.

For students with demonstrated academic readiness, there may be opportunities for increased flexibility while still maintaining clear expectations, staying on pace, and receiving ongoing teacher support.

Personalized Learning Time with Clear Expectations

You may hear the terms “personalized learning” or “asynchronous learning.”

At GCA, this refers to structured instructional time when students complete teacher-assigned learning activities designed to strengthen specific skills and demonstrate progress. These activities include clear expectations, deadlines, and checkpoints to support consistent progress.

During this time students:

Complete teacher-assigned learning tasks
Follow clear deadlines and checkpoints
Receive teacher feedback and guidance
Demonstrate visible academic progress
Complete their own work

Students are expected to actively engage during these timeframes by completing assigned work within the timeframe provided.

This is purposeful instructional time designed to deepen learning — not unstructured “free time.”

Building Responsibility and Confidence

In addition to strengthening academic skills, this school day model helps students develop important life skills such as:

Time management
Organization
Self-motivation
Academic responsibility

Families can support their students by maintaining consistent routines, allowing students to complete their own work, and checking in on assignment progress.

Teachers remain responsible for instruction and guidance, and the partnership between home and school continues to support student success.

Student Success

Our commitment to putting student success first is paramount. By combining purposeful instruction, meaningful personalized learning, and targeted support, we have created a school day that helps every student grow academically and build confidence for the future.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is live instruction?

What is asynchronous learning?

This is structured learning time when students complete teacher-assigned activities independently instead of attending a live class session. During this time, students may work through recorded lessons, guided practice, projects, or other assigned tasks.

Students are expected to complete assignments within the timeframe set by their teacher. Teachers monitor progress, review completed work, and provide feedback to help students stay on track and continue making academic progress.

What is Personalized Learning?

Think of this as customized learning time. During personalized learning, your student works on activities chosen by their teacher to match their individual strengths, needs, and skill level.

Much of this time is asynchronous, meaning students work independently through teacher-assigned lessons, activities, or practice. This allows students to focus on the specific skills they need to strengthen or master.

At times, personalized learning may also include synchronous support, where a teacher or staff member works directly with a student or a small group to provide additional guidance, clarification, or enrichment.

Throughout this time, teachers monitor progress, review completed work, and provide feedback to help students stay on track and continue making academic progress.

What is targeted support?

How do teachers know students are participating during personalized learning time?

What if my child needs additional academic support?

What about students with IEPs or 504 plans?

When will my student know what their schedule is?

Can I see a sample student schedule?

Student schedules vary by grade band to match developmental needs and course requirements. The examples below illustrate how the school day may be structured for each grade band.

Individual student schedules may vary based on courses, support services, and academic needs.

Individual student schedules will be available in the student's Infinite Campus account after the student's school start date.

PGB K-2

Primary Grades students follow a structured schedule that blends live teacher-led instruction, personalized learning, and targeted support throughout the school day. Strong Learning Coach involvement is essential in these early grades to help students stay engaged, organized, and on task.

PGB Sample Schedule

Homeroom	8:00 - 8:10 am	Homeroom
Period 1	8:15 - 9:15 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning
Period 2	9:15 - 9:30 am	Personalized Learning
Period 3	9:30 - 10:30 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning
Period 4	10:30 am - 12:00 pm	Personalized Learning
Lunch	12:00 - 1:00 pm	Lunch
Period 5	1:00 - 2:00 pm	Targeted Support or Asynchronous Learning
Period 6	2:00 - 2:30 pm	Personalized Learning

During the day, students participate in live instruction, complete teacher-assigned learning activities, and receive targeted support when needed. Personalized learning blocks allow teachers to assign activities aligned to each student’s strengths and skill development needs.

EGB 3-5

Elementary students continue to follow a structured schedule that balances teacher-led instruction, independent skill development, and targeted support opportunities.

EGB Sample Schedule

Homeroom	8:00 - 8:10 am	Homeroom
Period 1	8:15 - 9:15 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning
Period 2	9:15 - 9:30 am	Personalized Learning
Period 3	9:30 - 10:30 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning
Period 4	10:30 am - 12:00 pm	Personalized Learning
Lunch	12:00 - 1:00 pm	Lunch
Period 5	1:00 - 2:00 pm	Targeted Support or Asynchronous Learning
Period 5	2:00 - 2:30 pm	Personalized Learning

Students apply concepts introduced during live instruction by completing teacher-assigned tasks during personalized learning blocks. Teachers monitor progress and provide feedback to support continued growth.

MFB 6-8

Middle grades students follow a structured schedule with multiple instructional periods. These periods integrate live instruction, asynchronous learning activities, and targeted support opportunities.

Homeroom	8:05 - 8:15 am	Homeroom
Period 1	8:10 - 9:05 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 2	9:10 - 10:05 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 3	10:10 - 11:00 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 4	11:00 am - 12:00 pm	Personalized Learning
Lunch	12:00 - 1:00 pm	Lunch
Period 5	1:05 - 1:50 pm	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 6	1:55 - 2:45 pm	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 7	2:45 - 3:05 pm	Personalized Learning

Middle grades students begin developing greater independence while still receiving structured teacher guidance and clear academic expectations.

SGB 9-12

Secondary Grades 9-12 high school students follow a structured schedule that integrates live teacher-led instruction, personalized learning, and targeted academic support throughout the day.

SGB Sample Schedule

Homeroom	8:05 - 8:25 am	Homeroom
Period 1	8:30 - 9:35 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 2	9:40 - 10:45 am	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 3	10:45 am - 12:00 pm	Personalized Learning
Period 4	12:00 - 1:00 pm	Lunch
Period 5	1:00 - 2:05 pm	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support
Period 6	2:10 - 3:15 pm	Live Instruction and Asynchronous Learning or Targeted Support

High school students manage a more independent schedule while maintaining consistent engagement with teachers and coursework. Teachers provide guidance, monitor progress, and offer targeted support to help students stay on track toward graduation.

Definitions

Live Instruction

Live instruction is "teacher-led learning". These are focused, real-time sessions where the teacher guides the whole class through new concepts and skill mastery. They are designed to be engaging and fast-paced to help students stay on track and grow academically.

Asynchronous Learning

Personalized Learning

Think of this as customized learning time. During these times, your student works on activities chosen by their teacher to match their individual strengths, needs, and skill level.

Throughout this teacher-defined timeframe, teachers monitor progress, review completed work, and provide feedback to help students stay on track and continue making academic progress.

Targeted Support

Live, small-group support designed to provide focused clarification, intervention, or enrichment.

Teachers use student data to identify areas where students may need additional help or an extra challenge. They then work with small groups of students to provide focused instruction, practice, or enrichment.

What are students be responsible for?

How can families support their students?

Families play an important role in helping students build strong routines and learning habits. You can support your student by:

Supporting a consistent daily schedule
Encouraging engagement in live classes
Checking in on assignment completion and deadlines
Creating a quiet, organized workspace
Communicating with teachers and staff when questions arise
Understanding the role of the Learning Coach in helping students stay organized and accountable for their daily work

As always, our teachers and staff are here to partner with you. Together, we can help students stay on track and feel confident in their learning.

Is personalized or asynchronous learning optional?

No, personalized learning and asynchronous learning are not optional. Personalized learning and asynchronous learning are a required and purposeful part of the daily schedule. They are designed to support skill development, practice, and progress.

Personalized learning and asynchronous learning occur during structured learning time and are a required part of the school day.

Is my student required to participate?

Yes, students are required to complete assigned tasks. Students are expected to complete assigned tasks during asynchronous or personalized learning timeframes.

Completion of assigned work during this time is one way participation and attendance are documented. Missing assigned work during personalized or asynchronous learning is addressed the same way missed instructional time would be.

Can my student use asynchronous or personalized learning time to catch up on other assignments?

How flexible is personalized or asynchronous learning time?

Personalized learning and Asynchronous learning are flexible in that students may work independently during these timeframes, but assignments remain time-bound.

Teachers provide clear deadlines and checkpoints. While students may have flexibility within the timeframe, work must be completed within the timeframe established by the teacher.

This time is designed for students to focus on their individual learning needs or required services. This time is not designed for student work to be postponed.

What if my student is assigned Targeted Support?

How is this different from previous years?

The LAPS instructional model intentionally structures the school day around four connected instructional elements:

Live instruction
Asynchronous learning
Personalized learning
Small-group targeted support

The overall school day length is consistent with previous years. How the school day is organized has been balanced to support focus, engagement, and student ownership of learning.

Teachers remain actively involved throughout the day — providing instruction, assigning work, monitoring progress, and offering feedback.