We are all familiar with summer slide, the phenomenon where young students, during the dog days of summer forget what they learned during the academic year.
What about the challenges of learning during a pandemic?
The Internet of Things means we’re using multiple devices to connect (although not all kids have access to internet), there’s no universal platform to disseminate lessons or conduct classes. Teachers nationwide are maneuvering through the obstacles of their own learning curves, in an effort to keep student learners engaged.
Due to the complexities of access and equity only exacerbated by school closures, Albuquerque Public Schools is unable to provide instruction for ALL children. While teachers have check-ins, office hours, and are available to communicate with students and parents whenever possible, there’s no management system in place to provide digital learning opportunities to all kids, including children with special needs. Many teachers also have their own kids at home, to keep engaged in learning, while they work with their students. Until further notice, teachers and parents must rely on each other to piece together an education for students, using a combination of found resources, from home, until young learners can return to the classroom.
Google for Education treats teachers as lifetime learners, offering them tools, training and certification to take their lesson plans into the future. https://teachercenter.withgoogle.com
While APS does not have a management system for educating all of its students, there are lots of resources available for teachers to utilize.
https://www.aps.edu/news/coronavirus/at-home-educational-resources-for-families
Consider supplementing your kid’s learning opportunities with a virtual field trip. Explore national parks, and international museums, right here. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qpFAQz_QJt0ZTVTixAyuGRjsKGYI23CjlaO9eLBkThE/preview?fbclid=IwAR3y8J5sk4LOroiNJWkZzFDQPCDzcAsKAXr-XLzDCY_M2PFMDZQCaU-Z3aY
Students who have had their Spanish language studies interrupted can resume their studies using these resources.
https://www.littlelionslearn.com/
https://www.duolingo.com/
https://www.thespanishexperiment.com/
For the arts session of your kid’s school day, consider these fun art tutorials from Mo Willems https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmzjCPQv3y8
Learning from home has its advantages. Schedules can be flexible, and learners can take a little more time to digest concepts that may be difficult to adjust the pace in a conventional classroom. Perhaps students will be able to not only learn the basics appropriate for their age, grade, and abilities, but discover new interests as teachers and parents expand their own capacities to teach creatively.
The future of learning is here, and we’ll need the expertise of everyone around us to keep students from the COVID-19 slide.
