The world is so unsettled now, as we try to maneuver through these scary waters. As teachers, we are doing all that we can to help our students feel safe even though we have to do this through technology. I think what unsettles everyone the most is not knowing how long this will last. We hear different predictions and ideas every day about the length of this stay at home world. We just want to see our students and have some closure to our school year. However, this is not in our control either.
What is in our control is offering some normalcy to our lives and our student lives. As we do this though, we may sometimes become overzealous and expect things from our students that they don't have the support to complete from home. Give yourself some grace. You can't make up for the interaction that would have happened if we were in our schools. If you are meeting with your students online or giving them tasks to complete, keep it simple. Read a book, write a letter, solve a puzzle, play a game, help fix dinner tonight...these are all appropriate assignments that keep our students and their parents from being overwhelmed by school as well as by world events.
I hope this ends sooner rather than later. I hope that a vaccine is found. I know that when it is found, teachers are some of the people who helped to develop the doctor who finds the vaccine. This has always been true because teachers believe in their students.
I also know that the entire world is holding its breath right now. Do what you can to help your students feel safe. Don't feel obligated to have them complete large amounts of work. Believe in them and that they will be okay when this is over. All will be okay.
