Done with another week of school. Was it easier? A little. But it is still challenging and lots of work. Our District got the bright idea to have the students take the MAP test. Umm, it is difficult to administer it when in the classroom so can you imagine how it will be now?
I knew it would get easier once I had a routine set up for them. I spent all day on Monday working on my lesson plans to post in Classroom. Every morning I showed it to them and also referenced it so they would get into the habit of doing that instead of asking “What do we do now?”
I did not lose power so that is a win. However, a few of my students said they lost their Internet connection. I’m not sure how since they all have a Hotspot. Do all 27 students log in? Not all at once but total throughout the day they do. They come and go as they please and I don’t like it because I teach a lesson and then they log in and have no idea what we just did.
My complaints with remote learning is the number of students I have and the fact that they’re online for 6 hours. It is a long day for me and for them. I do give them breaks and independent work but that is also online. Oh and there are so many technology issues. I can only help them so much but it takes up so much class time.
In some exciting news I received a keeper for my watch. Mine broke and I had to use a hair rubber band to hold the band in place.
This week my running went well. I did the same workouts as last week but added one more mile to my long run and another mile on Sunday.
Tuesday morning it was raining in the morning and I thought about waiting to run after work. Well, it turned out that it was supposed to rain all day. Off I went. It wasn’t that bad. I am glad I did because later that morning I got a message that my mother’s results (she went on Friday to get tested again for Covid) were negative. After work I went to the grocery store and then went to pick her up so she could stay with us for a few days. She had been with my sister for about 3 weeks. It was good to see my mother!!!
Even Mateo missed her!
It was my mother’s birthday on Wednesday. My younger sister came over with a cake.
I live 2 blocks from a fire station and as I was heading back home during my run, I saw a couple of firefighters and fire trucks outside. I stopped for a few months. It was an emotional moment. I cannot believe it’s been 19 years.
WordPress Update: I think I have figured out this new format. It isn’t that bad. I still like the other format better. However, what I have not figured out how to do is copy an old post. Anyone know how to do that?
Linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.
Sounds like a good week, other than the ongoing problems with teaching. It was so much work to teach before everything happened — you’re doing a great job, even if no one has told you that.
I’m still using classic WP I guess, so I can still get through to the Admin & then copy posts that way. I’m sure some day I’ll have to switch over — although it’s still not exactly the same as it was. Like I can’t put in photo captions on the desktop, but I can do it on my phone. Weird.
Why do things have to change? 🙂 I went to the classic WP and could not find the feature to copy a post. I know I can just copy and paste but I remember there being an option when writing a new post to copy text from a previous post. Oh well, It will be fine. I need to pick my battles .
Now we have the option of going to our classroom to teach. I need to figure out when I can go since I still need to go set it up. I may need a whole week just to do that.
Well, things would be pretty boring if they never changed — but I know! Right now the right kind of boring sounds good, right?
If I go down to the bottom of the left sidebar, I get to WP Admin (once I’ve clicked through to posts). That takes me to the place where I can copy & paste posts — I’m still using that. I think I’m actually using the block editor for composing, but thankfully I’m still able to get to the Admin page, too.
Good luck setting up your classroom! I know that’s what you wanted to do initially.
Thanks, Judy.
Glad to hear your week went better for you. I saw a lot of kids for anxiety this week. Elearning is definitely taking a toll on them. I agree with the quote you posted; it’s punishment.
These past 4 days I did MAP testing and it was pure torture. Lots of technical issues and many kids didn’t even bother reading and taking the test. I don’t blame them. Two tests were in English and the other two in Spanish. Why are my TR students taking an English test? Anyway, still not finished but today (Friday) we are taking a break and I will resume next week.
Glad to hear you virtual school week is gong a little better. I am sure you will get into a groove. Nice job on your runs this week
Thanks, Deborah. I knew it would get better with time but I was just so frustrated in the beginning. And yes getting into a groove will make it so much easier too.
I’m so happy to hear that you had a better week of teaching. I totally agree that 6 hours in front of a computer screen seems very long!
So glad that you got to see your mother this week too!
It is a long time. I need to find ways to make school fun.
Glad things were a little better this week! I know it must be so hard to be online for that long. I was in PDs for like 7 hours straight a few weeks ago and it was so rough. Its probably way too much to expect kids to learn online all day. Not sure there’s another good solution at this point though:( I know our district has some asynchronous time when they have work to do but are not face to face with the teacher. Maybe that helps to break up the day a little.
I guess I should have mentioned that my kids do have asynchronous time. But it is till online work Sigh, I need to make school fun and interesting. 🙂
It did take me a bit to get used to the new WordPress interface. I don’t love it, but it works. So do you have the same students all day long, and you teach all subjects?
That’s so great you were able to see your mom again and she tested negative. I hope you all stay healthy!
I am with you – I don’t love it but it works!
Yes, I have my students all day (well the ones that do sign on). They have PE on Monday and the rest of the days they have Art. Each quarter is a different subject but they will always have PE once a week. I teach Reading, Writing, Math, Science, and Social Studies.
That’s great news that this week went much better than the week prior. And, that’s excellent news for your mother 😉 Fingers crossed for another good week!
Well this week I did MAP testing and we are very tired. My kids took 4 tests in Reading and Math (English and Spanish). We had so many technical issues and not all of them finished or logged in. Now i have to test those students that did not take the test. Total nightmare.
Glad your mom tested negative and you could celebrate with her. 27 students..wow. That’s crazy that they all aren’t online at the same time for the lesson either. What a challenge. Glad its getting a little better though. 🙁
No, all 27 are never online at the same time. I think the most I’ve had is 24 or 25 (which is still a lot). Somehow the other eventually join but then they leave or others leave.
The amount of time these kids need to spend in front of a screen is soul sucking. So tough for everyone. Happy Birthday to your mom. My mom turned 80 today and we partied over the weekend. So good to see her in way too long!
It is soul sucking for everyone. I don’t even watch as much TV anymore because I don’t want to stare at another screen. Well that and i just want to relax.
You’re doing great. There are huge differences between virtual school and distance learning, and I think the latter has been way more difficult for teachers, students, and parents. In our district, a lot of the distance kids can’t even hear the lessons! And even more are logged in and then marked absent. I can’t imagine. <3
Oh wow, why would they be marked absent if they logged in? All of my kids don’t log in at the same time so I don’t mark them absent. Attendance is such a hassle. I get that they want them to log in but many have technical issues or various home issues/situations. It is not fair to them.