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Social-distancing efforts have changed nearly every facet of our lives in recent weeks, from grocery shopping to employment. And with Colorado school closures expected to stretch into the summer, educators are confronting a baffling question: What does a completely digital classroom look like?<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything is going to be totally adjusted,\u201d said Shanti Savage, a second grade teacher in Dolores School District Re-4A.<\/p>\n
On March 18<\/a>, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis officially closed all the state\u2019s schools through April 17, saying \u201cit\u2019s increasingly unlikely\u201d that schools would reopen before the end of the school year. Local districts have been scrambling to come up with solutions and offer virtual learning to all their students in a meaningful and equitable way.<\/p>\n Staff have been using their extended spring breaks to change directions rapidly \u2013 to reorient their own structures and that of district families.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve really emphasized, start slow, let\u2019s not overwhelm parents,\u201d said Dolores Superintendent Lis Richard. \u201cThis is different; we don\u2019t get to mandate schedules to families, so let\u2019s just step into this slowly. So that\u2019s what we\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n Teachers have spent a few weeks preparing materials and training, she said.<\/p>\n Dolores and Mancos schools are set to begin remote teaching Monday. Cortez students have a week before it begins.<\/p>\n Mancos secondary Principal John Marchino said the district is trying to keep everything \u201cas normal as possible,\u201d from school routines to class schedules. One of the hardest parts about the process is the lack of social connection, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re social people,\u201d he said. \u201cI talk to kids, they miss being in school.\u201d<\/p>\n The Mancos School District Re-6 is following the stay-at-home order as much as possible, but for now, Marchino will be on campus in case families need to contact administrators.<\/p>\n Jeanette Allen, director of curriculum and instruction in Montezuma-Cortez School District Re-1, said staff are trying to determine how to accommodate different family situations, particularly in this turbulent time, and how to make the lessons valuable.<\/p>\n \u201cMostly we\u2019re also trying to be very thoughtful about it being meaningful learning,\u201d Allen said. \u201cJust sitting a kid in front of a program can or cannot be meaningful learning, so that\u2019s some of the conversations that we\u2019re having.\u201d<\/p>\n A wide range of instructional tools is available for educators, but figuring out how to implement them and acquaint students with them is challenging.<\/p>\n In Dolores, elementary teachers are asked to hold one live-video session every day with their class, and at the secondary level, each subject\u2019s instructor is asked to hold one or two sessions a week, Richard said. Teachers also are expected to hold \u201coffice hours\u201d with times that families can contact instructors with questions.<\/p>\n The Mancos secondary school plans to follow existing schedules as much as possible, Marchino said, by holding video sessions at the time core classes currently take place, using resources that students are familiar with and maintaining existing routines \u2013 just adapting them for online.<\/p>\n For Mancos elementary students, teachers will provide lessons no longer than 30 minutes per content area, said Principal Cathy Epps. She plans to dress up as Ms. Frizzle and record a video of herself reading aloud a \u201cMagic School Bus\u201d book to her students every morning.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to make sure I continue the connection I have students and families,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Many secondary students are familiar with Google Classroom, a free tool designed to help teachers and students share files and interact \u2013 all three districts plan to use it in their instruction. But getting younger children accustomed to digital learning platforms presents other obstacles, especially since students will be completing lessons on their own time.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re competing with media everywhere, especially social media,\u201d Richard said. \u201cOur teachers are used to having a captive audience in class, and they don\u2019t have that now.\u201d They\u2019ve been pushing teachers to create colorful, engaging lessons in which students can interact with one another and possibly even go on virtual field trips.<\/p>\n Along with Google Classroom, elementary students will use Lexia, Khan Academy, Waterford Early Learning and Newsela. All students in kindergarten through 12th grade use Discovery Education, Richard said.<\/p>\n Dolores and Mancos both have a 1:1 Chromebook system, meaning all students are assigned a laptop. Secondary students are permitted to take theirs home, but elementary Chromebooks typically stayed at school. Now, Dolores elementary students and Mancos students in first through fifth grades are allowed to take laptops home.<\/p>\n In Re-1, staff are evaluating the needs of families, to determine who should receive a Chromebook, Allen said.<\/p>\n Students have begun picking up their devices and gathering other virtual-learning materials to supplement the virtual learning. This week, they will continue to arrive on staggered schedules to avoid crowding.<\/p>\n \u201cI think especially when you\u2019re little, you need books, not just computers,\u201d Savage said. \u201cEven some kids, I gave them a 100s chart or some blocks to help them with math.\u201d<\/p>\n Assignments for her 23 students are posted Monday and due by Friday, so that students can complete them working around families\u2019 schedules.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of parents are staying at home with kids, and then also trying to work,\u201d Savage said. \u201cPeople\u2019s schedules are just really crazy right now.\u201d<\/p>\n Classroom management is a crucial part of elementary school teaching, but Savage said she\u2019s not too concerned about how that will go for their daily 30-minute video teaching sessions, as her students miss school and their classmates.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that especially with any kind of live sessions, that it\u2019s not going to be any kind of an issue,\u201d she said. \u201cBecause they\u2019re really looking forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n The live teaching sessions will be recorded, so students who can\u2019t participate during the live session can watch videos later and share comments on the lesson, Savage said.<\/p>\n Third grade teacher Angie Lowe also said she\u2019s starting out slow and trying to remain flexible for families.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is new for everyone,\u201d she said. \u201cThere will be a huge learning curve, and we\u2019re all expecting bumps along the way, but I think that we\u2019ll manage and get through them all.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s hard to know how the video sessions will go for her students, she said. As educators begin online staff meetings, running into snags of their own, they wonder about online learning.<\/p>\n \u201cWill I be able to see every student? I\u2019m not sure,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n On Monday, she plans to start class by continuing their read-aloud of \u201cThe One and Only Ivan.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think that\u2019s a great way to just bring everybody back together, is continue on that read-aloud, just to check in and see how everyone\u2019s doing,\u201d Lowe said. \u201cThis is such an unprecedented situation that we are in, and I think there are varying degrees of student anxiety that go with it.\u201d<\/p>\n Somewhere down the line, as students become familiarized with Google Chat and other platforms, she would like to incorporate more projects into her lessons.<\/p>\n \u201cI really do hope to be getting kids outside, and exploring and doing some science experiments and having them bring that back to those Google Chats,\u201d Lowe said.<\/p>\n Making sure all students can access the lessons is a big hurdle for districts.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re trying to be very thoughtful about our family situations,\u201d Allen said. \u201cWe sometimes have families working, we have some families who are out of work, and it\u2019s a very stressful time. We have families with multiple kids and may only have one computer to use.\u201d<\/p>\n Spotty internet is another obstacle in the area, and Re-1 is working out details, she said.<\/p>\n Dolores schools plan to open up rooms to families that don\u2019t have internet access.<\/p>\n \u201cAny families who don\u2019t have accessibility, we are putting a rotating schedule together for our library and our computer labs, for them to utilize them,\u201d Richard said. \u201cBut there will be a protocol in place that follows all the requirements the governor\u2019s put in place for distancing and disinfecting and all of that. But we will make our spaces available to those who don\u2019t have accessibility in their homes.\u201d<\/p>\n