I didn’t know what to say. Yes, it’s a bit a of crazy start to the year, and yes we are still waiting on the PPE that was promised us, but I find it hard to accept thanks when I am in such a better situation than others.
I know that every province, state, country has different rules around what is accepted in schools. Where I am, we are in cohorts of 60 students and teachers for elementary students. This means that within our cohort, there are no masks required but you can wear them if you want, and social distancing is non-existent. Outside your bubble, precautions are taken - 2 m distancing or wear a mask, washing of surfaces in the lunchroom and photocopy room, limits on how many people can be in each area, etc. For me, this means I wear a mask all day when I teach in grade 6 (only 2 or 3 students sometimes wear a mask in this class), and in my grades 7 and 8 classes that have fewer than 5 students, I can easily stay more than 2 m away. I wear my mask when I am approaching a student to help them or if they are coming to get materials for experiments. In my grade 3/4 class, where I spend half of my teaching time, there is no mask wearing until we leave the classroom (library, always, etc.) and very little distancing between students.
But for now, I am okay with this. Other than my voice being all scratchy after trying to teach over 27 grade 6s on Thursdays (sooooo much honey being consumed and throat coat tea!), I feel okay with the precautions being taken in my school. I know they are different than the « bubbles » we are asking people to have outside of schools. I know that not everyone feels like schools are doing enough. But I also feel like, for the most part, student's mental health is doing better in school than when they were at home. I can tell by the way they talk about school, from our conversations about what online learning was like for them.
I also benefit from being in a school that went back to part-time in-class teaching for 6 weeks in May and June last year to finish out the school year. Students that had attended school at that time (which was a large percentage of our school population) had already developed hand washing and distancing systems and were used to them. They are so happy to be back with all of their friends instead of just half their class. And as a teacher, I am really conscious that there are conversations we must continue to have to work on anxiety and SEL. I am happy we are finding ways to do things like the Terry Fox run that bring some normalcy and familiarity to the students. We also have a fantastic outdoor area outside our school that is great for outdoor learning. As a city where almost everyone is involved with outdoor sports, students are, for the most part, well dressed and well equipped for being outdoors in all weather.
When I see what other teachers are going through, I know why so many are speaking out about how this start of the school year is going.
To the teachers that are teaching their high school courses in a condensed intensive format, who didn’t get much notice nor planning time to do this, I am seeing the creative ways you are finding to keep students engaged in one subject for up to 5 hours a day. You are creating amazing activities for your students and sharing what you are doing online for others. I am so in awe of your collaboration, creativity, and flexibility. You’re rocking this!
To the teachers that are teaching online AND in person at the same time, who are finding ways to connect in person and virtually to their students with a variety of strategies, and who are working 2 entire jobs at once, I am in awe of your dedication and your persistence.
To the teachers who are worries about outbreaks in their schools and communities and who are speaking out online about the inequalities and mental health impacts this year is having on them and their students, I hear you and I am in awe of your courage to keep going through this difficult time.
To all teachers, whether you are having a hard time this start up or not, you are not alone. We may all be living in different situations and rules in our schools, but we all know what teaching is, and we can all appreciate that each and every one of us is living this in a different way.
If at any time you need someone to talk to, to vent with, if you want resources or are looking for connections, please reach out. We may not all be going through the same thing, but we are all in this together.
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