Subject: Re: [MK8] How's it going?

Wow. Just wow.

Our district is all remote until the first week of November (at least, that's the plan). Our families had two choices: remote, with the eventual return of face-to-face teaching (called "Our Plan" by the administration), or all virtual through at least January 15 (called "My Plan"). A) Thanks so much, admin, for creating more confusion where it didn't need to be with your choice of names. Even those of us that clearly understood the difference occasionally got tripped up and confused. B) The virtual plan is all self-directed, with a "mentor teacher" assigned to help via phone or email if needed. The curriculum is NOT the curriculum from our district, it is canned, and it is BAD, at least for fine arts and PE, at elementary level. The only music included is a beginning recorder course which has no content! They're expected to buy a book and go through it. UGH.

That being said, I can't STAND teaching via Zoom. First of all, it allows the district to overwork the Fine Arts teachers -- I'm teaching 48 1/2 hour sections a week, "at" two buildings. There isn't even time between grade levels; on an 11 section day, I teach non-stop from 9:20-11:50, then non-stop from 12:40-3:40. The strain on neck, shoulders, back, knees and eyes is brutal. When (if?) we go back face to face, they're going to have to not only reschedule, but add teachers. Unless they've put in Star Trek transporters, we can't be in one building at 11:20, finishing a class, and in another building, starting a class.

I'd forgotten over 29 years just how much of successful teaching is classroom management. It's almost unconscious by this time. But there IS no classroom management over Zoom, when a kid of any age can do whatever they want in front of a camera, including just walking away. It's up to the adult at the remote site (be it home, or wherever), if there is one.

And don't get me started on audio problems ("Hon, you're muted. Okay, can you get closer to your microphone? I see your mouth moving but we can't hear anything") and the lag. And the internet dropping out, not just being laggy. Had my own internet drop today 3 times during one class.

At this point, despite having several underlying conditions that make me susceptible, in addition to living with an 80 year old who has asthma, I'm ready to go back. Put us all in those yellow hazmat suits. I feel like 80% of the time I'm not even teaching. :(

Sonia in Walled Lake, Michigan

-----Original Message-----
From: MK8-talk [mailto:mk8-talk-bounces soniavining=wlcsd.org@lists.musick8.com] On Behalf Of Tina Morgan
Sent: Wednesday, September 16, 2020 2:14 PM
To: MK8 Mailing List
Subject: Re: [MK8] How's it going?

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I think probably people are just getting used to whatever their new situation is. I'll tell y'all what's happening at my school.

We began Aug. 6th. About 1/3 of our students are virtual students. The rest are hybrid and attend 2 days/week. The A group attends Monday/Tuesday, the B group Thursday/Friday. Wednesday mornings are reserved for staff development. Wednesday afternoons are for the teachers to check in on students.

Because of having fewer students, each hybrid class has no more than 10 in each class. Students leave the classroom only for restroom breaks.
Everyone wears masks and the students have desk shields.

Special subject teachers pre-record our lessons and send the links to the classroom teachers. The students get 2 special classes/week, since they are technically only in school for 2 days. I have so far done 3 lessons.
There was a 2-week gap between Lesson 1 and Lesson 2, a one-week gap between 2 and 3. I do a PreK video, a K video, and a 1st grade video - decided to make my life a bit easier and combine 2/3 and 4/5. No singing allowed in my district, so my main focus has been rhythm, with some listening activities with Carnival of the Animals. I include at least 2-3 out-of-your-seat activities in each 30 (ish) minute video.

Each of the specialists is assigned to a grade level to serve as an interventionist/sub. (No outsiders allowed in our buildings, so no subs.) I am assigned to 2nd grade. Two of our 2nd grade classes have only hybrid students. Two other teachers have hybrid 2 days and virtual 2 days. One of the latter had surgery and I subbed for her virtual class for 3 weeks, plus another day when she had a doctor's appointment. One of the other teachers was absent for 2 days and I subbed for her hybrid class. Then she quit and now the art teacher is filling in because she recently got a SpEd endorsement added to her license. She will probably be there until January because the principal has a candidate in mind but she won't be available until after December.

It's my 32nd year of teaching and I did consider retiring, but I'm not quite ready to go yet. We'll see how I feel in May...

On Wed, Sep 16, 2020 at 6:02 AM Juli Salzman wrote:

> I have wondered the same thing, Chris. I guess everyone is busy.
>
> Sent from my iPhone or Carrier Pigeon.
>
> > On Sep 16, 2020, at 5:25 AM, Chris Badger
> wrote:
> >
> > I'm on digest but I haven't noticed much traffic on the email
> > list-- or even the forums that just got started.
> >
> > I hope people are just busy...Thanks to Plank Road and all the
> > members
> who
> > make this list a valuable resource. :)
> >
> > I'm going to browse the Idea Bank and see if my question has already
> > been answered.
> >
> > Happy Wednesday, every one!
> >
> > Chris Ann
> > |=============================================|
> >
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--
Tina Morgan
tdmorgan7@gmail.com
Pre-K-5 General Music
Cook Elementary Fine Arts Magnet School
Columbus Junior Girlchoir Director
Columbus, Mississippi
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