Here’s what America’s Covid-Era classrooms look like

This will be a school year unlike any other, that much is clear. Trainers, parents and students across the country are returning to personal and virtual classrooms, shaped by the coronavirus pandemic.

There is no one-size-fits-all answer for educators by 2020. Reopening decisions are largely made at the local level, causing administrators to rely on conflicting guidelines from federal and state agencies as well as from public health experts. In some cases, the details of how to reopen are delayed days before students have to arrive.

Amidst this confusion, teachers do their best to provide personal and virtual classrooms to keep students safe and engaged. We asked educators across the US to tell us how the coronavirus is changing its classrooms.

We heard of kindergartens and kindergartens, a high school principal, a choir teacher and more. Those who have started classes are excited to be back with students, but worry about their safety and their school communities.

What follows is a picture of what it is like to be an American teacher in the Covid era. The answers have been edited for clarity and length.

Ashley Allen, sixth grade language arts teacher, Palm Coast, Fla.

‘Our school is not ready to reopen’

I bought plastic clear shower curtains from Dollar Tree and used shower hooks to hang them from the ceiling to separate students at a table. I will require all day masks for my students. I sit in a portable classroom with a back door that I can send students one by one for a “mask break” if they need one.

Our school administration has been very supportive of various teachers setting up their classrooms in which way they feel safest. But even in the pre-planning of teachers, it has become clear that our school is not safely prepared to reopen. Teachers and administrators do everything we can, but our corridors, cafeterias and classrooms are not large enough for real social distance.

Jennifer Graves, Lecturer in Special Education Preschool, North Haven, Conn.

‘Will her children be afraid of me in class? ‘

My students are 3 to 5 years old with autism, and one of my biggest concerns has been, “Will they be afraid of the PPE that my district advises me to wear?” I had not heard much discussion in our district about how our youngest students would process their teachers this way. I felt a need to show my students the smiling face behind the face mask and the shield.

After I shared the video with my students’ families, one family said I was looking for a doctor with the PPE and their children are afraid of the doctor. Will her kids be scared of me in class? It would break my heart if one of my students was afraid of me because of the PPE, but I know it’s the best way for me to stay safe in my class.

David G. Stone, High School Choir and Teacher of the Hand Clock, New Albany, Ind.

‘I spent more than $ 2,000 of my own money’

I have made several changes in my choir and handball classes for social distance. Since we can not have shared materials, I have added 10 extra tables with foam for the bells and each student will have their own material.

In choir, students sing with masks on. We follow a protocol for singing during Covid: We can sing as long as we have masks, are six meters from front to back and from side to side, are only singing for 30 minutes, and have the HVAC unit circulating inside and outside air at least once before the next class sings.

I have spent more than $ 2,000 of my own money to get things for my classroom to make it safe for me and my students. I had saved money for my choir for uniforms, but had to use it instead for Covid changes.

Molly Mullen, eighth grade language teacher, Littleton, Colo.

‘We just have to see how it goes’

This is an attempt at a socially distant setup in my classroom, but I have already realized that I will have to change it to accommodate more students. Our district follows a hybrid model of part personal, part instruction at a distance, and the cohorts in my classroom are different sizes, depending on the day. Ideally, I could have one student at each linked office location.

We just have to see how it goes. I’m really conflicting over the whole hybrid situation. I really want it to work. I want to be at school with the kids, everyone. You drain their energy, you become goofy with them and get excited. But I am also a little apprehensive, for myself and my co-workers. I’m overwhelmed too.

Vanessa Humphreys, high school science teacher, mililani, hawaii

‘It all feels like guesswork’

Our school requires six meters of social distancing and supplies hand sanitizer. Face shields are mandatory for teachers, but a mask requirement in the classroom is at the discretion of the teacher. We also open our windows and use a disinfectant spray.

To protect my students, I have added fans to increase ventilation, HEPA air purifiers in my classroom and plastic separators. I supply as many EPA-approved sanitizer and disinfectant as I can get my hands on, and I have a disinfectant mister for desks. It all feels like guesswork, but what seems to work for others, I try to get for my classroom.

Julianne Bird, high school anatomy and physiology teacher, Chandler, Ariz.

‘It’s hard to teach two and a half hours with a mask on.Between a rock and a hard place ‘

The school provided me with a bottle of sanitizer, disinfectant spray and a box of gloves. I’m told more supplies are on the way. I wear double layers, 100 percent cotton masks that I have sewn myself. It is difficult to teach two and a half hours with a mask on.

It’s hard to hear the soft students. I have to bend over and lay my ear close to her. It’s hard to manage activities when I have to wipe out all shared equipment or tell the students to have extra care not to touch their faces until the activity is over and I can pass sanitizer on. It’s challenging to tell “bell-to-bell to learn” without pausing and keeping students hydrated in this 115-degree heat.

Lucy Williams-Price, Nursery, Washington, DC

‘Nothing replaces practical learning’

My school is online until November, so I have set up my virtual classroom in my basement.

Key to my classroom is the document camera with which students can see me cut, paste, sort and glue during lessons. I can show my students how to shape my letters with a pencil or marker and how to write on paper. While I will use various programs to improve their learning, nothing replaces real-time application and practical learning.

I have tried in my lessons to incorporate different learning modalities in my regular classroom. With virtual learning, it is very important to incorporate music, movement, visual tones and tactile activities to approach and keep each child’s learning style engaged.

Molly Mackinnon, former first grade teacher, Lawrence, Kan.

‘I took all the material from the classrooms from somewhere’

While I recently decided to leave my teaching position, this is the outdoor room I designed. Under the shade of a tree, each child will have their own wooden pallet, a dust-covered half ball with a hard drawing board for a desk, a soft mat and buckwheat pillows for seating.

The pallets and hay bales, in addition to giving children clear spatial boundaries, also integrate movement – such as jumping while counting or imitating animals into stories – into our classes. There will be an outdoor hand washing station nearby for regular hygiene practice. All the teaching materials I have taken from somewhere, including pallets from liquor distributors.

Ian Malmstrom, High School Social Studies Teacher, Colona, ​​Ill.

‘It’s a matter of time before we go back to distance only’

So far, I have only purchased additional writing tools because students cannot share pencils or use the sharpener. However, any precautions I would take, other than starting a full distance, are mandatory for us, such as wearing masks, sanitizing as often as possible and keeping distance as far as possible. I considered not teaching this year, but decided reluctantly to return.

Teachers have understood about the health guidelines, but it can be frustrating trying to learn with them. The masks make it difficult to see the facial expressions of students. Students can collaborate with Chromebooks and Google Apps, but may not work in close groups as they have in the past.

The consensus among our teachers is that it is a matter of time before we only return to remote.

Veronica Munaretto, Second Class Special Education Teacher, Cook County, Ill.

‘I wanted to create a space that felt hospitable’

While I can use my actual classroom as needed, I plan to use my corner classroom for most of my distance learning. Therefore, I wanted to create a space that felt hospitable and contained items from my classroom that would be familiar, to facilitate a future transition back to class.

From my classroom, I brought home any activity that could be done with me keeping items on display for students to view and respond to, such as sound sorting cards based on sounds, math and language arts flash cards, a large clock and three-dimensional shapes. I also brought multiple photo books home to use for reading aloud. These are read, live and recorded throughout the school day.

Matt Roll, high school teacher and director, Tucson, Ariz.

‘All our students come from workers’ homes’

We strongly advise our families to stay at home and practice distance education. However, we know that this is not an option for all students. Therefore, we have spent our summer changing our classrooms, procedures and technology to make our school as safe and engaging as possible for those who choose personal instruction.

All of our students come from working-class homes. At least half of them have no parents at home during the day, so if we close, they would be placed in day care. We strongly believe that it is better for students to be with us than in day care, given the tremendous amount of thought we have put into the safety and education of children.