Back to the Classroom

I have taught students inside a classroom this week for the first time since the middle of March 2020. My school is offering a remote option for families who are not ready to send their kids back to school, but only one student in my homeroom is using this option, and not because of a fear of the virus. Her older sibling's grade has not yet returned to in person learning, and her family is keeping all the kids home until they can all return to school. As far as I know I'm the only teacher in my building who has such a high percentage of in person learners..

These kids are so excited to be back in the classroom! It's visible in their sparkling eyes and the tone of their voices. It's only been two days, but they are working hard and following every rule to the best of their ability. It is very hard for them to stay in their own space, especially when walking to and from recess, but even in the classroom. They keep forgetting that they are supposed to stay at their desks and have me bring the trash can around for their lunch garbage or take their pencil to the sharpener and back for them. (I had 10,000 steps before 2:00pm both days.)

It's only been two days, but I am exhausted. It's a good kind of tired, but if I'd been out of the classroom for six more weeks, it would have been a full calendar year. The extra safety measures add to my daily tasks, and I haven't had a single moment where I've had the time and brain space together to grade anything since the middle of last week.. Did I mention how tired I am?

By and large the students are doing great with their masks. I have one student who has trouble keeping his face covered. I have to continually remind him to cover his nose or pull his mask up. But he's also the kid who bounces in his seat or gets up and stretches or does a little dance every so often. I sat him in the back of the room by the door where he would be able to move without getting into someone else's space on purpose. I was forewarned by his previous teachers and saw his wiggliness first hand via Zoom.

My husband asked me tonight how I feel about everyone's safety at school. Everyone (students and staff alike) certifies their symptom status on a jotform before coming onto campus and everyone's temperature is double checked. The kids have plastic shields that they sit behind when they take their masks off to eat. They are cleaning and I am disinfecting their desks before snack and lunch every day. They have a specific area of the playground to use and their own set of color coded playground equipment to use and keep separate from the equipment of other classes. (My class has purple playground equipment.) The hallway is marked in six foot increments and everyone's hands are squirted with sanitizer before they enter the building, every time.

I don't think there are any more COVID safety measures we can take, but if someone thinks up some more, I'm sure we'll implement them. But to answer my husband's question, do I feel everyone is safe? Well... as safe as we can possibly be. I try not to think about the threat of asymptomatic carriers or shedding the virus prior to showing symptoms. I know that's how this virus operates and the reason it's still wreaking havoc across the globe a year after it was discovered. I try not to dwell on the what ifs and what I can't control. This is a big uncontrollable mess.

Here's to hoping the 2021-2022 school year is easier to navigate and much less anxiety provoking.