hey everyone–

here’s a snapshot of my tuesday evening.

(i sat down with my partner outside in the cold darkness and ate triple layered chocolate mousse cake while “My My My!” by Troye Sivan played in the background.)

it just sucks. the situation we’ve been put into and spun around in like a whirlpool–drowning in remote lessons, lungs burning from voice projecting to the void of off-camera, muted students–is so unfortunate, so unfair, such a disservice to our students. they deserve so much more. i feel their frustration when they understand the content, but are overwhelmed by the online space. to expect a 12, 13, 14-year-old to singlehandedly manage their day and their responsibilities is unrealistic when you have college students, adults with full time jobs, that struggle with that too.

oh my, my, my

i die every night with you

like today, would have been amazing in-person. we would’ve been able to take the writing workshop lesson i planned and put them into groups around the room like stations. we could have had the other teachers in the room at different stations like, “once you have your real-world statement, come up with an example with Ms. X,” like, ugh. we’ve been talking for the past two years in my education courses about effective learning and how in order for students to get the most out of their education–to have those skills stick, to have a memorable impression on their academic development–they need differentiation, movement, stimulation, and here we are! the education system doing the opposite of what its been pushing and progressing towards for the past fifteen years, treating our students like robots.

oh my, my, my

living for your every move

and i know this is the first time we are all remote. and i get that it’s new, and unknown, and blindly navigating the approach to otherwise standardized content, but these kids don’t deserve to go to high school with underdeveloped skills. it kills me that i don’t get the standard student teaching experience: the full year, the in-person–all of the things i was imagining it to be. during the two years of observations i wanted so bad to just jump to the front of the room and orchestrate group work or facilitate that enriching class discussion. to not be able to do in-person “turn and talks” or “jigsaws” has that psychological affect of “i’m not in the learning environment so i won’t be in the learning headspace” and it’s not their fault. to anyone who thinks the classroom environment and culture can be emulated in a zoom: you’re lying to yourself and your students.

oh my, my, my

oh my, my, my

-l.a.

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p.s.: Stay safe and healthy! Remember to wash your hands for 20 seconds at a time, don’t touch your face, and be considerate to your community by practicing social distancing! Let’s all do our part in fighting against coronavirus.