April 11 I'm Ready!

It's been a little bit over a week and things are starting to settle into a new normal.  I spent the time doing some house projects, which were a much needed distraction!  Now I'm ready to go with my students.

My district delayed starting distance learning because they wanted a strong plan in place and they had to attend to the technology needs of a huge chunk of our population.  While the delay has been a little bit frustrating from my parent perspective, I get it and just try to remind myself "It doesn't really matter."

So, this last week I spent my time developing videos and lessons for my students to work on.  The great news is, my students are used to doing things online both from my class and other classes at school!  I use the Flipped Classroom model frequently and so my students are already used to learning in this way, hallelujah!

I'm super excited to see how this next week unfolds and while I think I've put together a good week of learning, I hope to find some new and different ways to continue to engage them.

Resources for this week:  YouTube, Deltamath, Socrative, Canvas, TI-Nspire software

Wish me luck!

Coronavirus 2 Weeks in...Nothing REALLY matters.

Today is March 30, 2020 and as of now, we have been out of school for 3 weeks.  The first week out was Spring Break, and the following 2 weeks have been due to the Covid-19 outbreak.  This teacher/mom/wife/daughter is REALLY struggling.  I have had a full range of emotions and decided that this blog is my best way to attend to my mental health.

The biggest take away through all of my emotions over the past 3 weeks is....IT DOESN'T MATTER.  Now don't get me wrong, the health and well being of my family, friends, and life around us DOES matter, but here is what doesn't matter.

1)  My students are not getting any instruction from me for learning...doesn't matter.
2)  My students GPA and high school credit are being affected...doesn't matter.
3)  My district is not putting up curriculum that meets the needs of my own kids or my students...doesn't matter.
4)  Some of my students just want to do nothing...doesn't matter.
5)  My own kids are sleeping late and refusing to do any school work...doesn't matter.
6)  My daughter refuses to send out recruiting emails...doesn't matter.
7)  My daughter want study for her AP exam...doesn't matter.
8)  I keep getting grade notifications for a low grade...doesn't matter.

I just want to start with that.  I have to keep reminding myself not to be anxious.  That it IS okay that I have lost total control of everything in our life.

There have been some moments where I've had some great reflection over my teaching, the pace of life etc. and I will share those thoughts on another day.

Some questions to ponder:
What does "equity" really mean and do we have that in education? 
When things get back to "normal", will your new normal look the same?