MISSION, Kan. — With many schools still closed by the coronavirus pandemic, public and private alternatives are sprouting up across the nation to watch over children as they study.
The programs are taking shape in somewhat unlikely places: a dance studio in Florida, a martial arts center in Missouri and libraries in San Francisco.
The sites provide a lifeline for families that struggled through virtual learning last spring, but organizers acknowledge they are a poor substitute for schools with professional educators.
And experts say they could risk subjecting caregivers to the same virus dangers that closed schools.
