Grygla teachers describe what it’s like to teach from afar
Tue, 04/28/2020 - 11:36am
admin
When schools were first closed back in March, it was set to be from March 18th-27th. As the COVID-19 threat continued to worsen, distance learning options were explored as the transition seemed imminent. Sure enough, our state made the announcement that distance education would officially go into effect. Teachers everywhere changed their focus and plans, and adapted the best they could without a lot of time to do so. Online learning began on Monday, March 30th, and we now know that we’ll be finishing out the school year this way.
In regards to these unprecedented times, Grygla School Superintendent Jamie Lunsetter said he couldn’t be happier to be where they are – working with the staff, students, parents and communities the way they have. “Our staff has taken the time to make sure the delivery method we are using is as easily accessible and understandable to students and parents as possible,” he said. Any Grygla students who needed a computer, went home with a Chromebook. Many of their assignments are virtual, but some physical materials are still being delivered to and picked up at homes by our bus drivers.
Lunsetter noted, “Our students have adjusted well, although both staff and students are missing the personal interaction we have with each other every day. Our parents have been patient, flexible and helpful in understanding that this situation is out of all of our hands, and we’re all trying to make the most of it for our kids. He added, “The hardest part is knowing that our awesome group of seniors are missing out on milestones that seniors are supposed to have. They, too, have handled this with dignity and maturity, as much as they are hurting. I’d like to thank everybody at this time, but specifically our seniors. They have done so much for our school, and we will never forget that!”
With Governor Walz announcing that Minnesota schools will, indeed, stay closed for the rest of the school year, teachers everywhere have shifted to supporting their students from afar. If you’ve been wondering what that shift looks like and how the virtual classes are going, a handful of Grygla teachers willingly give us an inside look into their new normal.
(All interviews have been left in their own words.)
Jean Schulz, 1st grade
My curriculum has changed a lot with distant learning. The students are doing more work on their computers. I take daily attendance by checking to see if they have logged on to MyON to read their daily book. Each week I assign spelling words for the boys and girls to learn and a writing assignment.
Parent involvement is very important because they are the ones giving the spelling test and they have to take pictures of assignments and send them to me so I can grade the work. Also, first graders are just starting to read and write so parents have to be there to help them out. Math and other reading is done on computers with programs that show me their progress each week.
I am very thankful and grateful for all the help the parents are doing to help their child with distant learning.
Each week I send out a video to my students to tell them about the packet they will receive that week. I get some videos and pictures back, which I LOVE!
I really miss teaching in my classroom and being with my students. I miss seeing how hard they work and being able to see their improvement in their reading and writing. I miss talking with them and hearing all their stories and seeing their smiling faces.
Kerry Carlson, 3rd grade
I am using Study Island for my distance learning curriculum. The kids use this already during the school year to get them ready for the MCA testing in the spring. The site has math, reading, language/arts, spelling, social studies, and science. Everything can be done online so this works out great! The kids have their Chromebooks from school to use.
I take daily attendance by student responses to my daily attendance email. I release assignments on Fridays and they are due the next Friday.
The distance learning is going well. The kids, parents, daycare providers, and other family members have been awesome. We know that some parents are still trying to work and their kids are elsewhere during the day.
I send out a few videos each week and they vary from something about science to well-being, and I video myself once in a while. The kids and I meet once a week using the Zoom site and it is so great to see their faces and visit with them all.
There are many unique parts about distance learning, I would say that the most unique part is that the schedule is very flexible for the families and myself. The students are able to work on their assignments during the day or week when it works for them. Some students get their assignments done as soon as they are released, and others will work on a few things each day.
I miss seeing my kids each day. I am really proud of them and how they are able to adapt to change and take responsibility for their own work. It is great to see this as a teacher!
Abby Sundberg, 4th grade
My curriculum is similar to what it would have been in the classroom as far as standards. The way we are learning, however, is way different. Lessons are taught through Study Island, as well as by myself, through videos, emails, and any other way students need. There are less hands-on activities happening, but more interactive online activities. Each day students have their assignments that need to be completed. I also post optional assignments each day if students are looking for more things to do. These optional assignments range from art projects, to dances and movement exercises.
I do take daily attendance. Each day I have a discussion question that students need to answer. If they answer they are counted as attending for the day. These questions are a great way for us to all still interact as a class about the same topic.
Assignments are due daily, but students have the option of working on them more throughout the week to improve their scores.
Distance learning is working okay. My students are really putting in the effort, which is what really counts! I just miss seeing them face to face each day and all of our conversations throughout the day. Most of my students are doing really good to complete their work on their own, but parents have been really great with assisting them when they need it as well as with communicating with me both when their child is having trouble and when things are going good.
I post a video of myself each morning explaining the days’ work to my students. I also post myself reading a book each day. We started “Classroom Book a Day” on the first day of school. It was one of my students’ favorite things, so I have continued it.
The most unique part of this is probably learning how to teach my students when they aren’t physically with me. It has been a learning experience for me as well.
Lastly, I just want to tell my students that they are doing a great job, and I miss them so much! I can’t wait until we can get together again!
Gabe Rath, 7-12 grade Industrial Technology
We are doing lots of the same curriculum that we would be doing in the shops at school, but we lose a lot of the hands-on approach that we had. Instead of building the table, we are watching a video or videos of joinery of the table, and building model versions of a particular project or activity. Though, not all students have access to machines and materials at home that we have at school. There are lots of great videos of the various lessons we would have been building on YouTube.
Attendance is done using Google Forms posted every day in the students Google Classroom. Google Classroom is the web based program that most have chosen to use to arrange curriculum for the students. My classes have an assignment of some sort every day, either a reading assignment, a worksheet, video with discussion, or a model building activity using things from around the house. If a chapter read is a bit longer, they will have 2 days to get it read, before being given an assignment based on the reading.
I have made Fridays my due date for all assignments for the week, giving students more time to get things done through the week if they are busy with other things.
I have not done any videos, or had any zoom meetings with the students; I have been communicating with students via email and through Google Classrooms.
I miss seeing the students, and hearing about the things that are going on in their lives. Sports, prom, class trips would have all been topics of conversations we would be hearing about from the kids.
It has been interesting balancing home life and work life; I seem to be checking my email far more often outside the school day. It has been fun spending more time with my daughter Catelyn at home, either helping her with homework, or doing some of her Phy. Ed. workouts.
Brady Olson, K-12 Health/Physical Education
The Health curriculum has remained the same for the most part. Students are completing the same material from their Health books, but are completing assignments on their Chromebooks through Google Classroom vs. worksheets in class.
Phy. Ed. is quite a bit different. Students are completing daily workouts and exercises at home compared to participating in large group activities and games in school. All classes are participating in a fitness program that has a different workout for each day.
Older classes have also had “challenges” they try to complete without taking breaks. The challenges have consisted of following along to YouTube videos and seeing how long they can last doing the workout. They also report any other activities they have done on their own throughout the week so I can hear how they are keeping active. It sounds like quite a few of them have been put to work!
My daily attendance is done by having daily assignments/questions for the students to answer on Google Classroom. Their responses are time stamped so I know when they replied.
Most of the assignments are due daily since that is also counted as their daily attendance. For Health, there are some assignments that are due at the end of the week since they may need more time.
So far I have stuck with emailing and communicating on Google Classroom, but videos may be added in the future.
Teaching Phy. Ed. while sitting at a desk, and looking at a computer screen every day is probably the most unique part of this. In school, I am always moving around and don’t see a computer most of the day!
I have enjoyed receiving pictures and videos of the students completing their exercises and doing other activities. I’ve also heard from a few families that the parents are doing the workouts with their kids; I thought that was cool! I was also challenged by an elementary student to complete the Baby Shark Ab Challenge on YouTube. The student sent me a video of her completing it and challenging me, so I did the challenge and sent a video back!
Betsy Saurdiff, Art/German
My curriculum is not at all similar to what it would have been in the classroom. In art class, students are working with simple materials that they have at home, so they’re limited in what kinds of projects they can do. Instead of wheel-thrown pottery and hand-building techniques, they are working on logo designs. They are much more dependent on computers.
In German class, the students are no longer taking quizzes and tests, but instead are showing me what they know by doing projects such as videos, slideshows, song lyrics, etc. They share these projects with me with the Google Classroom computer program.
For my attendance, I post a riddle at 8 am. Students must respond to the riddle each day by 3 pm or they are marked as absent. It’s a good way for them to check in and see what the schedule is for the week, to see if they have anything missing, or just to see general announcements. This is all done online with Google Classroom.
Each Friday, I post the assignments for the next week. Students generally have one or two projects per week. Students take photos of their completed work and share them with me online. It seems like they are spending much more time on their weekly sketchbook assignments than before. It’s good to see that they’re using their sketchbook as therapy perhaps. If they have questions, they email me, which is great. It’s really important for them to advocate for themselves and reach out for clarification.
So far, I’ve used video for class meetings. My assignments are given in written form. I have found that I really need to be very concrete about each step. Clear expectations are critical in this style of learning.
My teaching style is very “hands-on”, so it’s been very different working on the computer all day. I miss the daily contact with students and staff members of course. It’s very difficult to check for comprehension or to assess student learning. Long-term, I’m concerned about the sustainability of distance learning. It’s just not the same.
I’m very proud of the effort of my students and the support of the community. No one signed up for this and we’ll get through it together. Students have become much more independent learners. I love to see the projects they’ve worked on, although it’s definitely not the same as seeing their bright faces each day!