Since 2020, homeschooling has increased nationally due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even after school restrictions were lifted, many families chose to continue homeschooling. Homeschooled students often have ample time for in-depth project work and center their learning around their individual interests. Thus, homeschooling families can be an ideal audience for geographic-based inquiries. This presentation will focus on an online pilot project that incorporated the ArcGIS Online Schools contest as a means of engaging homeschooled children ages 5-14 in conducting geographic research. Challenges and lessons learned from this project can help to inform future GIS outreach efforts.
