Back to School in a Pandemic

I've been privy to many chats on back to school shoulds and shouldn'ts. It seems like the majority of teachers, I've heard from, are screaming for virtual options and new teaching strategies. This is no surprise. Anyone who has been a first year teacher will remember their constant sickness from being exposed to many kids at once. Then after a few years of teaching, we develop immunity. However, COVID 19 is different. This is a new disease that doctors still do not know a lot about. Teachers will also have issues following CDC guidelines and making kids follow them as well. We can offer suggestions and discussions with our kids, but do they get the point when so many adults fail to see the importance of keeping everyone healthy during novel coronavirus outbreaks? Is wearing a mask and social distancing enough? I understand that parents need childcare when going to work, but our basic need is to keep kids and society safe.

I refer to Israel's experiment with opening schools. Even though their numbers were lower than ours in the United States, when they opened, disease skyrocketed. If this happens with small spread, I don't want to think about what could happen in areas with out of control COVID 19 numbers. However, teachers definitely need help with teaching virtually or from a distance.

Whatever your district decides to do, I hope everyone will take precautions to remain safe. After all, we do not want another repeat of the types of suffering from Yellow Fever. Maslow's pyramid has always put safety as a basic need.

To help you with the beginning of school, I've been creating new resources. I am especially happy with my Grandparents' Day Activities because come October, I will become a grandma with the birth of a grandson! I'm beyond excited with the upcoming birth of Herkeberger. That's what they are calling him these days. Hopefully Herky will get a new name upon birth, but even if he doesn't, I'll still love him, forever.