Back when Covid19 was ‘Rona and we were all doing remote learning, I decided to transition my kids from private school to public school. It had nothing to do with their current school. In fact, I love my kids school and the community that I found there. But, due to ‘Rona we had to make some hard decisions.
All right, public school it is. But, I wasn’t expecting their neighborhood school to be one of the worst performing schools in the city. So, I had to request special permissions into the top 3 performing schools. Ugh, this has been a process. The good news is that Grayson was accepted into one of the 3 schools we requested. Livi on the other hand is still in the waiting pool. From the looks of it my kids will be going to separate schools. Livi is afraid of going to a school with no friends and I feel awful. I’m worried about the quality of her education in the upcoming school year. I’m also worried about Grayson going to a new school without Livi looking out for him. This season of motherhood is definitely a season of sweet and salty. I feel grateful for so many things but also overwhelmed.
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School Reopening Options
Let me state the obvious normal is no more. Parents have already been asked to give their feedback on 3 possible options for reopening schools: remote learning, in-person learning or a combination of remote learning and in-person learning. Honestly, I don’t know what the right answer is in this situation. Remote learning didn’t work well for my kids during quarantine. I can’t tell you how many Zoom meetings my kids missed. Working full time to come home to cook dinner and homeschool was quite the struggle. It was like I was taking the line between sanity and burnout and using it as a jumprope. Some days I felt I had it together and other days I sat on the floor of my shower wondering how I inherited so many damn hats.
Remote Learning (Safest Option)
Remote learning or distance learning is the education of students who are not physically in school. Most parents have experienced this thanks to ‘Rona. With that said, there was definitely a learning curve and we were all in the learning part of the curve. Teachers were struggling to continue their curriculum online using Zoom and other online learning resources. Parents become teachers with very little support. Kids were missing in-person social interactions of being in school. Remote learning was challenging and maybe it’ll be better now that we have a little experience under our belts. But, this is assuming that there is a parent or guardian that will be able to be home with their kids. Can people have a child and a job during Covid19 or will we be forced to choose?
In-Person Learning (Least Safe)
This is not to be mistaken with normal learning. This will be far from normal. Children 2nd grade and above will be required to wear a mask. Social distancing will still be required however schools lack the capacity to accommodate all the students all at once. This is impossible. So more than likely will not happen.
Combination of Remote and In-Person Learning (Reduced Risk)
This is more feasible than 100% in-person learning. Students may stay interested and feel more connected with a combination approach. There is still a risk of children getting infected and infecting adults who are less likely to survive Covid19. It also requires parents to become teachers and possibly choose between work and homeschooling. This option could work but I feel some things need to change. For example, there should be an online parent resource forum on lessons. I learned the hard way that how I was taught math is very different from how my daughter is being taught math. It was frustrating and I often turned to my good friend, Google for video tutorials.
My other concern is grades below 2nd are not required to wear a mask. These are also the students more likely to touch their face, mouth, nose and eyes with contaminated hands. Even if the likelihood of them serving Covid19 is high they will bring it home to adults who may not have similar odds in their favor.
Focus on the BEST Choice Not the Right Choice
I felt so overwhelmed with trying to figure out what the “right” choice was in this situation. I needed a timeout to put everything in perspective and decided to go with the “best” choice for me and my kids. My best choice may differ from yours and that’s okay. Whatever you choose, no one can tell you it’s wrong. Feel free to comment your – Back to School thoughts.
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