We're getting close to the end of the school year. It's been a tough slog for everyone. Some kids have done better than others. My Girl decided to get up at for her last class of the day. Here in California it is at 5:00 am. It is pretty difficult to do online learning when you don't get to interact with the teachers in person and some are less responsive than you would like. A couple of teachers have recorded their classes which helps. For other classes she is more on her own. She really had done an amazing job. In spite of all of that she earned awards for math, science, and writing at the end of year awards ceremony. She didn't attend. It was at 1:00 am.
My Boy attends the second session offered by three of his teachers. These teachers repeat the class at 6 pm for students in the Western hemisphere. It has helped immensely. There was some frustration when I found out he was behind in a couple of classes. There was a serious breakdown in communication about assignments and work to be done. I can understand teachers wanting to deal directly with students, but sometimes it is good to let the parents in on it too. He rallied somewhat reluctantly and got the essential work done. So glad it is over for now.
On the second week of online school while we were still in Rome My Girl's writing teacher sent the kids on a virtual field trip to an online museum to find a picture that showed how they were feeling and write about it. This is what My Girl found. It is Interrupted Reading from the Art Institute of Chicago. We were only a couple weeks into this whole thing and it was already starting to wear her down.
There are a lot of museums online but it can't replace the experience of actually being there.
Another fun writing assignment was "Paint-chip Poetry". The teacher posted several paint-chips with different color names. The students then wrote a poem or very short story using all of the color names in order. They were allowed to add word endings, but couldn't change the words themselves or word order. It was fun to see what she came up with.
In English her class is reading Fever 1793, a book about the Yellow Fever epidemic in Philadelphia in 1793. The book is part of the usual curriculum, but what a time to be reading it! Although the kids in Rome are unlikely to know someone who has died from the current pandemic, it has been a big disruption for them. There is a lot of worry in the air. The teacher went above and beyond by arranging an author "visit" to the virtual classroom. It was a highlight of the class. I'm not sure how she arranged it, but the kids loved it.
She has really enjoyed reading historical fiction this spring. A couple of favorites were The War That Saved My Life and its sequel, The Witch Of Blackbird Pond, and Johnny Tremain. Her teacher also recommended Jefferson's Sons. A sort of fantasy time travel historical fiction was Once Was a Time. We still have our library card and the e-books have been a life saver.
We visited the beach in between constantly changing orders for opening and closing. It seems to have settled now that the beaches are closed 11-5, but you can cross the beach if you are surfing or swimming.
The days pass are fill with something, but it is hard to say what. I should be accomplishing great things with all of this time on hand. I am spending time working on a new class and doing the daily do list of things.
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