Jana Bontrager has teaching in her blood. Her father, grandmother, grandfather, and great-grandfather before her fostered a love of the classroom. Jana's background in teaching began in the public school system, but when the opportunity arose in 2014 to join the ranks of online homeschool educators, she found a wonderful balance of being an at-home mom and wife while fulfilling her drive to teach.
Jana Bontrager earned her bachelor's degree in English Education from Florida State University, and later earned her master's from Concordia University as an online student. Her master's experience helped her to empathize with the journey of her online students. She wrote her master's thesis on Online Education which developed a deeper understanding of her methods of teaching.
Jana's enthusiasm for all things English has been called "infectious". A professed word nerd, she finds classic literature and origins of words to be fascinating. Even the study of linguistics makes its way into her poetry teachings. In her classes, students get a wide scope of the language we speak.
When away from her computer, Jana enjoys the outdoors in her home in Idaho. She loves spending time with her husband, kids, grandkids, and animals. She also loves the stage anytime she gets the chance to be involved in her local community theater.
Her faith in God and Jesus Christ have sustained and fueled her through her whole life. One of the best things about her job is being able to weave elements of her faith into the subject she loves.
Testimonials
"This year Sarah completed dual enrollment English at the college level. Her courses were rigorous and she excelled in both. She was even encouraged to pursue advanced writing opportunities. Thank you for preparing her so well."Christel
"If only people could see how your class works and how my child loves his virtual classroom. He is far more focused without public school distractions."Parent
Parent"Sarah took English III and IV and later completed dual enrollment English at college level. Her professor encouraged her to pursue advanced writing and even an internship in the Writing Center.
She is more than prepared — and we are so thankful for what you poured into her."
"Madison just completed NWEA MAP testing and scored in the 92nd and 94th percentile in Reading and Language. Three years ago her scores were half that. Thank you for your quality English classes!"Christel
"Virtual learning has gotten such a bad reputation because of how public schools handled it. I am constantly defending my choice to use virtual learning — because it absolutely works here."Student
Christel"I never really enjoyed English very much, but being in your class this year made it enjoyable… There are no words to express how grateful I am to have had a teacher as dedicated as you.
If I heard English I would run,
All I wanted was to be done,
Then I came to this class
And with every task
English suddenly became fun"
"He was so determined to catch you in a mistake and earn five more points that he was glued to everything you posted — and when he missed the chance, you would have thought his team lost the Super Bowl!"Parent
"My daughter loved your class. I am especially impressed with the improvements I see in her vocabulary and writing this year because of your class. I love that your vocabulary focused on prefixes, suffixes, and roots. That will help her so much on the SAT."Parent
"Hello Mrs. Bontrager, I wish so much that you could watch Eli during your class. He has his headphones on across the room and is just so into your class… At one point today he was shouting and jumping up and down because he finally got a mystery question. He had his own little party about it."Parent