DAY 1: School Shut Down

Something is missing here.

Shutting down schools for a global pandemic is new territory for me as a person, teacher, and parent.

I have spent the day calling or emailing my advisee's families, collaborating with colleagues about our learning plans, and waiting for answers to many questions. I'll be working throughout the week to create and revise assignments that will meet the needs of my students.

As a parent of 2 college students whose universities have transitioned to online learning for the remainder of the semester I am concerned for their academic and social health. They are dealing with a lot of transitions too.

We are all in a state of flux AND WE WILL FIGURE IT OUT!

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Day 3: School Shut Down

One thing that has changed as a result of school closings due to this pandemic is my daily routine. Getting to school between 7:30 and 7:45 is normal for me and I am still doing it even though I don't technically have to. Working on remote learning assignments and logistics still feels better in my classroom than at home. Many colleagues are doing the same so it is nice to have the interaction. By the end of the week, I will adapt my daily routine to work from home. School staff and students are very accustomed to strict daily routines that not having one at all can be rather disconcerting. Educators are recommending that students and families develop a daily schedule to provide structure for learning and family. Working from home will be interesting as I adapt to what my school is recommending as a schedule. My son who had to come home from his spring semester of college will develop his own routine for finishing his course work and having mom and dad as his roommates. So f

Day 8: The New First Day of School

Today was our first NEW day of school. Remote school. School where I can't interact face to face with students and colleagues. It's doable but tough. So much is lost when one is only communicating with written language through a keyboard. Videoconferencing should alleviate some of this but we have to wait for permission from parents. During my lunch, I joined a Zoom video conference hosted by Meredith Atwood. You have probably never heard of her but I've been a fan for years now. In the triathlon world, she is known as swimbikemom.com and I've had the pleasure of meeting her. She just published a book, " The Year of No Nonsense:How to Get Over Yourself and Get On With Your Life" ( https://www.amazon.com/Year-No-Nonsense-Over-Yourself/dp/0738285536 ) and she is now hosting daily community meet ups. Today was a great day to participate in her Community Meet Up because her guest was Mike Reilly. Unless you are a triathlete or are related to a triathle

Day 5: Packing Up to Work From Home #WFH

This is my stack of materials I am bringing home from my classroom. I am cautiously optimistic that I will be able to engage with the following while I am at home facilitating remote teaching and learning. The stack includes: Climate Change and Questions of Justice curriculum published by the Choices Program at Brown University. This is at the top of the list because I am team teaching a Global Environmental Science class with a science colleague and this curriculum is the structure for our class. NEASC Self Reflection Guide for Accreditation - our school just started this process last month and I am the chairperson of our steering committee. For those who don't know what NEASC is, it is the New England Association of Schools and Colleges - aka - the school accreditation organization. Back copies of Social Education published by the National Council for Social Studies. There are excellent lesson plan ideas that I want to read and think about. In the midst of all of our

Global Roads with Mrs. Surprenant

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