The Approach To Reopening Schools: Decoding The Terminology

With the dialogue swirling around what school is going to look like this Fall, I am realizing that there is a plethora of terminology being used by educators, politicians, and pundits alike that may be confusing. Some terms are being interchanged with one another which, I imagine, is leading to even more bewilderment with regards to the safety and security of your children. 

I’m here to help.

Here’s a baseline set of definitions and descriptors to assist in decoding the jargon you’re hearing day-in and day-out:

• Blended Learning: According to Clifford Maxwell for Blended Learning Universe, “blended learning is any formal education program in which a student learns at least in part through online learning, with some element of student control over time, place, path, and/or pace.” Historically, this term has been used to define a combination of students learning through direct instruction from their teacher(s) while also receiving instruction from adaptive software that creates a learning path based upon their unique, individualized learning needs. 

Blended Learning should not be confused with the ideology of blending at-home and at-school instruction together like what took place in the Spring. Instead, parents should be referencing this terminology when their children log into Khan Academy, Imagine Learning, or Freckle for example; take a benchmark assessment to determine their strengths and areas of improvement in a variety of subjects; or  complete a suite of tasks that are leveled and designed to meet student(s) exactly where they are on their own unique academic journey. 

• Distance Learning: Distance learning refers to a student learning at-home, at a distance from their school’s campus. Students are given online instruction and tasks from their teachers and they are to complete these at home, submitting them in video, digital, or written (via snapshot) form for editing and grading.

• Hybrid Model: This term refers to students participating in both in-classroom learning and distance learning. Many schools and school districts are working to implement this system in the Fall with students in smaller cohorts rotating between attending classes on-campus and at-home. Some of these models include having students at home join in with their classmates at school by watching all lessons via Zoom or other web-conferencing platforms.  Other ideas include having teacher’s aides assist with checking in on students at home while the lead teacher focuses on instructing the students within their physical classroom. 

This model relies heavily on Blended Learning technology to be done impactfully, so it is crucial for schools and districts to ensure that their students are outfitted with the proper technology to be able to learn from home. Chromebooks, iPads, hotspots, liaising with local internet providers on families’ behalf, these are the responsibilities of academic communities to make both distance and hybrid learning feasible.

You already know about masks, about hand sanitizer, about social distancing. You know that class sizes will likely be smaller and lunchtime will be indoors. Hallways will be one-way thoroughfares and there will be a bathroom schedule to prevent overcrowding.

So, what comes next? Last week I illustrated what I am doing, as an administrator, to get ready. Success in the Fall depends on preparation, so here are some ways to ready yourself, your kids, and your home for what’s to come:

1. Invest in the practical. School supply lists will likely be very different this year, pared down from their usual robustness, so if you can, email your child’s teacher now. Find out directly from them what, if any, supplies they are going to need this Fall. Will their teacher be doing much pencil-to-paper work, or will the majority be on a screen? Are there classroom supplies that you can help contribute to given the sanitation requirements of  a hybrid model? Extra paper towels, Clorox wipes, bottles of hand sanitizer, or pre-sharpened pencils to add to the classroom cache? A hybrid model is only impactful if everyone invests in its success, together.

Additionally, as I am recommending to my school families, prepare a cache of masks for your kiddos. One on their face as they leave the house. One in their backpack, another in their lunchbox. A Ziploc bag, labelled with their name, and filled with a minimum of five extras that their teacher can keep for them in the classroom if the other options become soiled or unusable. If they are able to wear free dress to school, make daily outfits easy to put on and even easier to wash at night.

Invest in several water bottles that can be quickly sanitized and used on a daily basis with your child as communal drinking fountains are going to be a big time no-no at school. Practice opening difficult snack packaging with them at home this summer as the limiting of person-to-person contact at school will definitely preclude who can help your child open and close their snack packs during recess and lunch. Consider parceling out snacks, sandwiches, and other treats into easier to open pouches and zippered baggies to make mealtime as easy as possible on everyone.

2. Get their study space ready. You’re going to keep hearing me say this. 

In the Spring, when the shelter-in-place was thrust upon us, it was understandable to clear off a corner of the kitchen table and set-up shop for your child’s schooling. But now, that just can’t remain the case.

At best, students will be able to attend class, in-person, part of the time in the Fall. But, that means that they will still be working from home, too. Take time this summer to get their at-home study space ready. Have it located near an outlet so that they can consistently keep all devices charged for use throughout the day. Have it armed with a mash-up of binder and scratch paper, pens and pencils, highlighters, and index cards. Post-it notes are great for marking pages in textbooks and novels as they read and respond. Have a list of log-ins at their desk, on the refrigerator, in your phone—you’ll need these handy. How’s your wi-fi? Do you need to upgrade your speed, your modem, get a hotspot? We don’t need to get caught off-guard this time around.

3. Don’t tell your kids you want them out. This is a tough one for me to narrate as I want you to know that I totally understand the frustration, the impatience, the exhaustion that has come with homeschooling. Zoom fatigue has nothing on the weariness of parents and guardians everywhere who have had to navigate their own jobs while also playing teacher from 9 to 5. And, on behalf of educators everywhere, I want to thank you for your partnership and let you know just how much we appreciate you!

Back when I was teaching Seventh Grade, I clearly remember one (of many!) conversations. This mom, in particular, was at her wits’ end with her prepubescent daughter who was going through a rather brutal hormonal surge. She came in one morning, threw down her handbag, and said to me:

“You have to keep [student’s name] here until June. I just can’t deal with her anymore!”

Certainly understandable.

I have been on the receiving end of many of these same conversations since schools closed back in March, though hormones and teenage attitudes aren’t the driving force—instead, the shelter-in-place is. But here’s the thing—your kids hear you say this. They are on the receiving end of your frustration, and unfortunately, this situation is as out of their hands as it is yours. 

If you need some space, tell them. If you are feeling overwhelmed, let them know that as they, too, are probably feeling the same way. If something they are doing is bothering you or hampering your own work-from-home dealings, come up with a solution, together, to mitigate the disruption. But, don’t joke with them, your friends, or their teachers about how you want them gone. I’ve seen the heartbreak these comments can have on your kiddos—even though I know that is not your intention.

We don’t know what the Fall has in store—but, unlike in March when we were all unexpectedly clocked from behind by COVID and school closures, this time we can claim some sense of control and get ready to tackle the new year, in whatever form it takes, head on.

Four Ways to Help Your Kids Cope With Change and Uncertainty

As you are sheltering-in-place, it is likely that you are seeing your child at both their very best and worst. Pancake making dance parties spiral into catastrophic meltdowns. Discussions between siblings devolve into the kinds of battles that Marvel movies are made of. You find yourself teaching the best math lesson that has ever been taught when suddenly, and for no known reason, your child is screaming at you to stop ruining their life.

Sound familiar?

Believe me—as teachers, we see and feel this daily. Maybe the meltdown comes because of a change in routine. Maybe it’s because a student (or, three!) has had enough writing for the day. Perhaps it’s because they would just rather be anywhere else than where they are.

And, in today’s COVID climate, it could simply be that they miss the way life used to be.

A sentiment I think we can all relate to.

But, as hard as this new world circumstance is on you and me, it’s even harder on your child. You and I have weathered plenty of storms in our lives—job changes, breakups, illnesses, the loss of friendships—the list goes on. And, while sheltering-in-place and isolating ourselves from our usual social interactions is entirely unchartered territory for all of us, as adults we have access to a memory bank full of coping strategies to draw upon, while your child does not. Perhaps they have lived through divorce or grieved the loss of a grandparent, either of which is clearly jarring and not to be discounted, but the absolute disconnection they are now experiencing is entirely new.

As a teacher, I always anticipated the difficulty that came with routine changes. I knew that when I swapped class schedules, changed my hair color, or altered the date of a class party, there would inevitably be backlash from a handful of kiddos. I still have former students who call me by my maiden name because the married moniker just doesn’t feel right to them.

I tend to find change jarring and can absolutely relate to resistance.  

But, as the captain of my classroom, I knew that how I reacted and responded to change—whether I saw it coming or not—would mold and shape how my students perceived it.

If I let them see me sweat, meltdown, throw a fit or lose my cool, then I was modeling to them that they should do the same. 

Now, let me be clear:

Is it okay to cry? Yes.

Is it acceptable to be unhappy and frustrated when we are thrown a curveball? Definitely.

Is anger an appropriate feeling when things don’t go as we intended them to? Surely.

Are we going to have moments when we are anxious, impatient, and flat out annoyed? Absolutely!  We are human after all!  

Our kids benefit from seeing vulnerability as a necessary part of healthy communication and resolution.

But we also need to be acutely aware that we are our kids’ point of reference. They mirror what we do, what we say, and how we say it.

How you are handling this quarantine is shaping how your kids will navigate this and any future life obstacles.

Here are a few ways that I approach change and crisis with my students:

Talk about it.

I’ve never shied away from using “I” language to talk to students about feelings. “I am feeling angry”; “I am feeling disappointed.” I always follow those statements with specific reasons for my feelings. Maybe it’s frustration over a poor choice that they made. Maybe I am irritated because a lesson that I was really excited about landed like a lead balloon. Even now in the COVID crisis, I am honest—“I am really struggling with the fact that we’re not in school together. I miss everyone and our daily routines.”  

When talking with your kids, use “I” language so that they learn how to attach emotion-specific words to their feelings. Coach them in qualifying those mindsets so that you can understand where they are coming from and respond specifically.

Learn more about communicating feelings here.

Take a time out.

So often we want to be the loudest voice in the room—have the last word. But, when it comes to frustrations hitting a boiling point, less is more. There have been many scenarios when I would need to address a student’s reaction or response to a particular situation, but instead of us both approaching it fired up and angry, I would give us time to level out. 

Some scenarios need to be tackled in the moment (blatant disrespect or physical aggression, for example), but if you are both coming to a head over a grammar assignment or their lack of initiative on a math worksheet, take a break. Give them time to get up and move around, and give yourself time to breathe. Likely you are both more tense than usual due to confinement and overwhelm. So throw on a three song playlist, and agree to come back together to discuss feelings when it has ended. Believe me, those 10-minutes can and should make all the difference.

Find your new “take a break” soundtrack here.

When in doubt, write it out.

Sheltering-in-place is giving us all a valuable gift of time. Sure, it may feel like it’s never ending, but it is a great opportunity to have your kids put pen to paper and write! Command of the written word has slowly diminished with the onslaught of abbreviations and emojis. Have your child keep a daily journal of their quarantine experiences. Have them write about what they’ve been doing, how they are feeling about it, things that they want to remember when this is all behind us. 

Teachers often use journals as a way to read and respond to kiddos who are less apt to vocalize their feelings. Perhaps you should try this strategy if your child is having a hard time communicating their thoughts to you in conversation—write notes back and forth to one another. It is a great way to bridge the uncomfortable.

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Make the “new” an adventure.

If you project excitement, your kids will follow—even if it takes some coaxing. If I sprang a pop quiz on my students, I would soothe the anxiety of those who didn’t like surprises by making it a “lolli”pop quiz, and give a Tootsie Roll to everyone as they completed the task. Find some way to make each day feel new and exciting—take turns having each person at home make lunch for the other members of the household, for example. Hide prizes within chores. Use Jolly Ranchers, stickers, or smelly spots from lip gloss as rewards for getting academic tasks done throughout the homeschool day. The more excited you are about this whole debacle, the more your kids will be willing to acquiesce to change and even disappointment long term.

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Chocolate Variety Pack for under $15

I won’t generalize, but I can pretty confidently say that nearly everyone is sharing the same feelings of loneliness, disappointment, and overwhelm. There are moments when it feels charming—staying in PJs all day, taking Zoom meetings from bed. But those moments are generally shattered by the reality that life as we knew it is vastly different. 

You‘ll never get this time with your kids back. You won’t get the chance to be present for those “aha” moments between 8AM and 3PM that we teachers live for. Soon enough you’ll go back to being the parent, and we’ll resume our work as teachers in the classroom.

So, instead of fighting it, use this time together as a means of instilling long-lasting coping strategies in your child. And, keep reminding them, and yourself, that this is only temporary.

5 Tips for Homeschooling Your Kids Like a Pro During Coronavirus Quarantine

Coronavirus Is No Match For Your Parenting!

Here in San Francisco, we’re in the thick of the official COVID-19 shelter-in-place. It’s been toilsome, I’m not going to lie.  If you’re anything like me, the allure of “Netflix and chill” wore off after the first 12-hours, and now you want to climb the walls. And, if you’re a parent, that’s a whole bunch of minutes in which you have been playing mom, dad, cook, housekeeper, teacher, friend, counselor, referee, circus clown, and about 17 other odd jobs you never fathomed would pepper the landscape of your March 2020. 

As an educator, I’ve been marveling at watching how my students are coping with the shelter-in-place. For some, the very idea of not being with their friends, surrounded by the sounds, shenanigans, smells, and sights of their school environment leaves them blind. They don’t know where to look, what to do, how to even begin learning from a distance.

For others, the idea of being on their own and removed from the performance pressures and social anxiety that comes from working amongst their peers is the deep breath that they have, for years, been waiting for. They are doing their work, engaging with their teachers via Zoom, and all around, living their best student lives.  Still, others are as apathetic to distance learning as they are to classroom learning—school has never been their thing, no matter how you package it up. And, COVID-19 isn’t going to change that.

Fair enough.

So, we work together, you and I, to do what we can. To engage our kids to the best of our abilities from afar or up close at home. And, to do so with as much grace and flair as possible, here are my top five ways to thrive both during and after COVID-19:

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Never be above negotiating.

If there is one single thing that I have learned during my 17 years in education, it’s that you’ve got to be ready to compromise. Does this mean that you are giving in to the theatrics of your nine-year-old when they only want to watch YouTube and eat Cheetos for breakfast? Nope. But, does it save you from finding yourself at an impasse every five minutes as you try to ramrod that Vocabulary worksheet down their throats? Definitely. 

Barter with them—40-minutes of Math work for 15-minutes of FaceTime with their friends. Silent read for 30-minutes (they should do a total of 60-minutes a day), and then take a body break (check out www.gonoodle.com). Seven carrot sticks at lunch before they have their Takis or make their bed before they jump on Instagram in the morning.  The more control they feel, especially in times of things being out of their control, the easier it will be to maintain both balance and normalcy.

Set-up a schedule.

Perhaps your child’s teacher has already given you one which mimics their daily classroom routine. Awesome!  If not, I would highly recommend reaching out to them and seeing if they can provide you with a framework. Or, develop one yourself that includes dedicated time to each subject with allocated breaks in-between. Have your child be a part of the planning process—put it up on a whiteboard in the kitchen, on a large sheet of butcher paper in the living room, or lipstick it on the bathroom mirror. Your kids are craving structure, all of the time, but especially during this time of uncertainty. So, the more you can establish a routine, the better!

And, get creative with alarms.  Gone are the days of a basic kitchen counter egg timer, take a peek at these links to online countdown clocks that use visualization to help kiddos understand the concept of counting down the minutes:

• https://www.online-stopwatch.com/classroom-timers/

• https://apps.apple.com/us/app/visual-countdown-timer/id541364004

• https://www.visnos.com/demos/classroom-timer

Designate workspaces.

The boundaries of going to school and then coming home from school are blurred during this time of sheltering in a single place. Create a space that is for “school only.” This can be a section of the kitchen table, a corner in your child’s bedroom, a folding table erected in the living room. Make that their school space, and after breakfast, that’s where your child goes to complete their work. When they take breaks, or when the school day is done, have them practice organizing their materials, pushing in their chairs, etc. just as their teachers would request before they change subjects or head out to recess. Having a specific workspace will also help them to get into school mode versus just hanging out and completing a worksheet or two. With this long gap in direct instruction from their teachers, we need to make sure that their heads and hearts are in the game, albeit remotely.

Have fun.

Fractions can be studied while baking cookies and measuring the ingredients. Counting steps, leaves, trees, rocks, stop signs on a daily neighborhood walk will support number sense. Reading a story together and writing an alternative ending is great for Language Arts. Have your child film and narrate a family reality show to practice public speaking. Dance-offs are great in lieu of P.E. class, a family game of charades to understand vocabulary, or completing a jigsaw puzzle as a means of developing fine motor skills.

We, as teachers, want you to help your kids complete the content that we provide to you during this time of distance learning, but we also recognize the enormity of value that comes from time spent together. Conversations that cultivate communication are essential to your child’s ongoing development. 

Be patient.

It’s not going to be easy every day, all day. But, it’s not always easy in the classroom, either. There are plenty of days when lessons go awry; kids have meltdowns; someone throws up while another spills a bucket of paint. Do what you can. When you can. How you can. 

My favorite thing to tell my students is that they are more than good enough. So now, I am telling you—as you strive to be everything for everyone, what you are doing to keep your kids on track in this time of crisis—you and your efforts are more than good enough. 

Together, we’ve got this.