In this week's, I survived...
Then I remember I am a mother of four, ages 7-15. And I am now responsible for continuing to check in on and educate my 150 students virtually, but ALSO manage my children's education from home. We are taking on the job we trust other education professionals to do, while trying to manage our actual jobs, our households.
I've done a couple of things this week to prepare for the coming new way of life. I love Khan Academy, and have used it many times to cram for exams. Now they have excellent virtual and free courses for students K-12+. By Day 2, my youngest was asking for math practice (she's insane, I know, but also brilliant and hungry for knowledge!) so I signed her up. By the end of that day, ALL FOUR had spent at least 2 hours on it. With no incentive or reward.
These kids WANT knowledge.
I have been on a journey the last few years, evaluating how education works, what kind of educator I want to be. I sincerely hope that we can use this tragedy to vault our society into a new world. Where students become an active participant in their education.
Next week, I will put my kids on a regular schedule. I have outlined general subjects for them to focus on, but I will let them be flexible in what and how they choose to study it. There will be LOTS of Brain Breaks (Go Neural Education!)
But before I worry about any of that, I worry about my kids who don't have a person who will do this for them. Who may not have even the option. Who may not have food, or a safe place.
I saw a post from a friend and former teacher today on Facebook just to check in with folks on their. It as them to reply with a different colored heart based on their current mood. It was simple, and yet so impactful. I was so moved I immediately posted it in my Google Classroom as an easy check in for my students.
I miss my students. I miss by coworkers. And it's only been a week.
I've included a copy here - feel free to share:
Week 1 Down!
Mental Health Check 💗💛💚💙💜💝
During this time of uncertainty, let's check in with each other. How is everyone doing?
💗 Staying positive
💛 Just okay
💚 Neutral
💙 Could be better
💜 I'm having a hard time
💝 I'm in a dark place and could use a friend
These kids WANT knowledge.
I have been on a journey the last few years, evaluating how education works, what kind of educator I want to be. I sincerely hope that we can use this tragedy to vault our society into a new world. Where students become an active participant in their education.
Next week, I will put my kids on a regular schedule. I have outlined general subjects for them to focus on, but I will let them be flexible in what and how they choose to study it. There will be LOTS of Brain Breaks (Go Neural Education!)
But before I worry about any of that, I worry about my kids who don't have a person who will do this for them. Who may not have even the option. Who may not have food, or a safe place.
I saw a post from a friend and former teacher today on Facebook just to check in with folks on their. It as them to reply with a different colored heart based on their current mood. It was simple, and yet so impactful. I was so moved I immediately posted it in my Google Classroom as an easy check in for my students.
I miss my students. I miss by coworkers. And it's only been a week.
I've included a copy here - feel free to share:
Week 1 Down!
Mental Health Check 💗💛💚💙💜💝
During this time of uncertainty, let's check in with each other. How is everyone doing?
💗 Staying positive
💛 Just okay
💚 Neutral
💙 Could be better
💜 I'm having a hard time
💝 I'm in a dark place and could use a friend
Great insight one what is going on. You hit it on the head when you said, "Not only do I parent my kids, but I also worry about my 150 students." It is so true and what I'm finding difficult is getting feedback from them. I've been trying to give some light assignments like, share a pic of what you did today and I'm getting little to no feedback. I'm hoping that constant reaching out will provide at least encouragement to my students. Hopefully they will see that I'm thinking about them! Thanks for the post!
ReplyDeleteI keep hearing our administration say that the current feedback is showing that it takes 2-3 weeks for students to get engaged in the online format. So, my advice is continue providing encouragement and ensure that what your offering is engaging! At least, that's my plan! I also created a YouTube channel to post my videos to the students. That way I can at least track view, even if students aren't actively completing tasks, I can see that they are at least watching and connecting in some way. That has been VERY encouraging!
DeleteI am also trying to see the silver lining in it. OSPI's most recent update encourages educators to help students figure out how they can connect their learning to their own interests and passions and pursue it that way. In my head I was like, "Um, finally someone is saying it." Hopefully this helps all of us recognize that kids really do want to learn; they just might not want to learn someone the way we want them to. Thanks for the thoughts!
ReplyDeleteI SO connect with this right now. Trying to get my coworkers to understand that you cannot assign work digitally in the same way that you would in the classroom, even if you use the digital platform. We have to make learning personal, engaging, and intrinsically valuable!!!
DeleteIsn't it crazy that a week seems like forever? I think the difference between Christmas break and Spring break and why this is so hard is that came abruptly and with so many unknowns. I haven't started eLearning or getting my own kids on learning platforms yet, so thank you for sharing your mental health check in. It's a great idea.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! Thank you so much - I received great, honest feedback from them. I also have done two Zoom open meetings for students and have scheduled them twice a week for now. I have different students each time (not a lot) but not the ones I would have expected! They were so honest, and fun to speak with. With had real conversations and I tried to give them a voice in how learning for my course would look for at least the next 3 or 4 weeks. They know what they want, and what works for them, and they should have a say in how this learning looks. We ask all the time, "What should we do?" and we forget that we have them right there to ask.
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