As school districts in Massachusetts submit their fall proposals to the state, many parents are coming up with their own contingency plans. Normally, students would be wrapping up their summers and preparing to return to school at the end of the month. But these aren’t normal times, and we’ve never seen a back-to-school season like this. Homeschooling pods are being discussed as a viable alternative to returning to schools or enrolling in online education. This…
We’re used to summers filled with barbecues with friends, pool parties, and sightseeing vacations, but the coronavirus pandemic changes things. Despite the disappointment of canceled concerts, events, cruises, and camps, it is still possible to have a fun summer as a family–and more importantly, stay safe while doing so. Here are some at-home activities to replace those that might be taking a hiatus this summer. Swimming Alternatives 1. Use a lawn sprinkler. Provided you have yard…
Perhaps the most essential part of learning online is connecting with and encouraging online students. Merely copying and pasting the course content into a learning management system cannot be the extent of online course development. Encouragement can come in many forms, including positive feedback on assignments, emails, phone calls, and video messages. To encourage online learners, teachers can create short video messages that can be used to help students persevere through academic and personal challenges.…
When Jessyka Bagdon set out to offer her tap dancing classes as online extracurriculars, big questions started popping up right away: what about kids who don’t own their own tap shoes? How do you tap dance at home without ruining the floor? Then came the really big challenge. Online programs like Zoom are designed for meetings, not dance classes. “They’re made to pick up voices,” she explains, not the clickety clack of tap-dancing shoes. “So…
For many young people, sheltering at home means missing milestones and public recognition of their achievements. This is especially true for seniors graduating from high school and college, and many are feeling lost. Kendall Smith, a high school senior who lives in Tallahassee, Florida, says her school has many traditions leading up to graduation. One of the most eagerly anticipated events is “Grad Bash,” a rite of passage when all graduating seniors head off to…
May 7 is the date that Montana Gov. Steve Bullock declared it was safe for schools to reopen in his state. But according to the state’s Office of Public Instruction, just a few school districts in small towns have taken the governor up on the offer. That gap — between a state executive proclaiming schools safe to open and the reality of tiny groups of students gathering in just a few schools — shows the…
Due to COVID-19, unprecedented numbers of US schools have been forced to transition to virtual learning. It has been an interesting change for everyone involved, from students to teachers to parents. At this point, you or your child may be falling behind due to the increased lack of individualized attention and the decreased opportunity to ask questions and/or collaborate with peers. In this article, we explore a few free resources available to high schoolers in…
In a typical summer, more than 14 million campers and staff attend overnight and day camps in the United States. But summer 2020 will be far from typical. To prepare for that, the nation’s largest summer camp associations, the American Camp Association and the YMCA of the USA, have released a field guide for how summer camps can operate more safely during the coronavirus pandemic. The 82-page guide, prepared by a private consulting firm, offers…
What will happen on college campuses in the fall? It’s a big question for families, students and the schools themselves. A lot of what happens depends on factors outside the control of individual schools: will there be more testing? Contact tracing? Enough physical space for distancing? Will the coronavirus have a second wave? Will any given state allow campuses to reopen? For all of these questions, it’s really too early to know the answers. But…
Social isolation is a common and valid concern as we head into an indefinite length of time with limited access to our normal routine and in-person interaction with other people. Some may take social distancing in stride, but for most, it’s causing a high degree of anxiety and anticipated loneliness. To help you relieve some of this apprehension, here are some ways to prepare and manage in order to reduce the negative emotional impact of…
