Monsters Inc
We've had to re-quarantine some grandparents due to a (totally normal and not concerning) hospital visit. So just to be safe we have a tiny coworker at home this week.
This meant that my only hope of getting some work done this morning was to forego my usual vinyl selections and set her up with some cheerios, milk, 2 different types of water cups, and a movie. Plus all of her toys and books and the cushions off the couch, and also a basket of her shoes.
Entertaining a 16 month old is hard enough, trying to do it while also navigating a full time job at home is impossible.
The nice thing about today's schedule is that nap time perfectly lined up with my prep so I had the chance to send some longer emails and make some phone calls - the things that are near impossible to do when she's awake. This is where it's been really helpful to have dedicated that time last week to being prepared. I have D2L announcements ready to go, checklists for daily tasks and on-going jobs. I am becoming more efficient with this work from home thing as the days go on.
I am excited about the work that my students are doing though. Starting this week, my Humanities students are working on small weekly tasks that will lead them into a final project that will really allow them to explore the circumstances that they are living in. Let me nerd out on lesson plans for a second...
I've designed each week to follow a schedule where there is one learning task, a virtual classroom to provide context and meaning, and then a discussion or reflection to put the learning into practice. It's super open ended so kids that have the desire or opportunity to go deeper in their learning can, but the ones who don't will still get the essential learning required. It is so satisfying as a teacher to feel like you have designed something accessible to all students. I'm sure there will be some bumps in the road, but right now, before anything can go wrong, it feels really good.
We're starting by looking at how international organizations are addressing issues involving or created by the pandemic. Next week we're looking at the responses of individual nation states. My favourite part about designing this work is that it's forced me to spend some time learning about what is happening in other countries. I've actually found it fascinating and also reassuring to learn about the various responses and consequences. From what I've learned so far, I am fairly confident that we are doing ok here.
Many countries are starting to open up or relax their isolation rules. It's exciting to see more people come out the other side of all of this but it's hard to watch it and know that we are months behind them here. It gives me hope that the end is coming, though maybe not quite as quickly as we would all like.
Calgary is experiencing a spike in infections. I think mostly due to a large outbreak in a meat packing plant south of the city. My specific area is currently the darkest red on the map of the province - this means highest number of confirmed cases. It is worrying and scary but the good news is that the death rate is still low for us and the number of recovered cases is increasing. I'm just hopeful that we can make it through this peak without getting sick.
This meant that my only hope of getting some work done this morning was to forego my usual vinyl selections and set her up with some cheerios, milk, 2 different types of water cups, and a movie. Plus all of her toys and books and the cushions off the couch, and also a basket of her shoes.
Entertaining a 16 month old is hard enough, trying to do it while also navigating a full time job at home is impossible.
The nice thing about today's schedule is that nap time perfectly lined up with my prep so I had the chance to send some longer emails and make some phone calls - the things that are near impossible to do when she's awake. This is where it's been really helpful to have dedicated that time last week to being prepared. I have D2L announcements ready to go, checklists for daily tasks and on-going jobs. I am becoming more efficient with this work from home thing as the days go on.
I am excited about the work that my students are doing though. Starting this week, my Humanities students are working on small weekly tasks that will lead them into a final project that will really allow them to explore the circumstances that they are living in. Let me nerd out on lesson plans for a second...
I've designed each week to follow a schedule where there is one learning task, a virtual classroom to provide context and meaning, and then a discussion or reflection to put the learning into practice. It's super open ended so kids that have the desire or opportunity to go deeper in their learning can, but the ones who don't will still get the essential learning required. It is so satisfying as a teacher to feel like you have designed something accessible to all students. I'm sure there will be some bumps in the road, but right now, before anything can go wrong, it feels really good.
We're starting by looking at how international organizations are addressing issues involving or created by the pandemic. Next week we're looking at the responses of individual nation states. My favourite part about designing this work is that it's forced me to spend some time learning about what is happening in other countries. I've actually found it fascinating and also reassuring to learn about the various responses and consequences. From what I've learned so far, I am fairly confident that we are doing ok here.
Many countries are starting to open up or relax their isolation rules. It's exciting to see more people come out the other side of all of this but it's hard to watch it and know that we are months behind them here. It gives me hope that the end is coming, though maybe not quite as quickly as we would all like.
Calgary is experiencing a spike in infections. I think mostly due to a large outbreak in a meat packing plant south of the city. My specific area is currently the darkest red on the map of the province - this means highest number of confirmed cases. It is worrying and scary but the good news is that the death rate is still low for us and the number of recovered cases is increasing. I'm just hopeful that we can make it through this peak without getting sick.
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