The world of 2D learning is one all Parker students have needed to adapt to. Within Parker, a lower schooler’s day relies on real human contact through morning meetings, read alouds, recess, and other activities which require class participation. Now, this ability to meet in person has been taken away.

Creating methods for remote learning that were successful throughout the lower school was described as “overwhelming, research-based, and Parker-goal focused.”

“We wanted to be true to the developmental age of students in this digital platform and mindful of how our academic, social-emotional, and physical goals adapt to online,” Kimeri Swanson-Beck, the Head of Lower School said.

This is a completely new world for lower school students, as communicating with peers and teachers online is something they are not familiar with. At their age, screentime is generally limited and they are not used to such abundance on a daily basis.

 “They are not used to communicating with friends, teachers, or content on a screen in a 2D world,” Swanson-Beck said, “While they are getting better at it, many prefer the 3D school environment for learning.”

Within the lower school, different grades handle remote learning in different ways. Students typically attend online classes a minimum of two times per day.

Students within junior and senior kindergarten keep engaged with school by watching video messages from teachers with an occasional live conversation over Google Meet. This way, they are able to replay the message if something is misunderstood. These videos can be watched by students and parents at any time during the day. When live meetings are required, students sometimes work all together and sometimes in small groups. Junior and senior kindergarten are the only grades within the lower school who did not receive a personal iPad to take home, so students are required to use their parents’ devices in order to access school material. 

“Within the kindergarten philosophy we don’t really promote a lot of screen time for the children, so this is now the opposite from what we’ve been saying to our families all the time,” junior kindergarten teacher Lisa Nielsen said, “So now, we are forced to the opposite.”

A main concern right now within the junior and senior kindergarten is their social health. Other than the family a student is living with, there might not be anyone for some students to interact with. This change can be especially difficult for some younger students, so just logging on to the Google Meet is very important. This gives the ability for students to interact with those who they might not have had as much face to face contact with recently. 

“In JK and SK we’re really more concerned with kids’ social and emotional wellbeing right now,” senior kindergarten teacher, Kirkland La Rue said, “So, there are opportunities for kids to log on, be seen, and see one another.”

First, second, and third grade students have different, but similar schedules for remote learning. They use platforms such as Google Meet and Google Classroom to connect and turn in assignments. This new change has been easier on third graders who are already familiar with using Google Classroom, but more difficult for the first and second graders because of their unfamiliarity with these online platforms. 

Lower school students connect through Google Classroom and Google Meet due to their simplicity. Although the program is easy to use, Google Meet has presented several technical difficulties within the lower school.

“Sometimes you get frozen and you get bad internet, and that’s hard,” a first grade student said. “At school, you don’t have to worry about bad internet because people are right next to you.”

The technological difficulties have been a struggle for many students. There is now a designated time during the week specifically for students who need help with using Google Meet and other platforms they are finding difficult. There was an incident when a student’s microphone and sound was not functioning correctly, so the teacher had to type all of the directions in the chat for them to complete the activity.

“It’s been really hard because we are constantly fielding and problem-solving around tech issues,” second-grade teacher Sarah Willett said.

Teachers have issues with Google Meet that go beyond the technical difficulties but also about features of the website. The chat can’t be turned off in a Google Meet and can distract students while they are in class. Despite the difficulties, the Tech Department has supported the Lower School.

Teachers are still trying to make virtual learning as similar as possible to the regular environment, despite obstacles. There are some activities during a lower school student’s school day that cannot be replaced, but recess is not one of them. Recess is known as some students’ favorite “subject” in school.  Even though recess was a time spent on the playground and field of Parker, that does not eliminate the ability to incorporate it into remote learning. “Virtual recess” occurs three times every week and is led by the assistant teachers.

“It’s successful to some extent,” Willett said. “The kids seem to like it, but I would say only a third of the class attends every time.”

 Different activities occur during every virtual recess. Some examples are dance parties, talent show contests, and show and tell. These periods are simply efforts to bring the activities done collectively as a class to the screen.

An average day for a second grader begins at 8:30 in the morning, which is earlier than the the Upper School start time during remote learning. Throughout the week, students have a mix of academic classes like writer’s workshop or math, a special class such as science or music, and a period involving physical activity. Their day ends at 3 p.m.. Lunch and P.E. periods are also provided. Physical activity is very important to a younger student’s health, so students have been advised to run around or do something that involves exercise during these P.E. periods. This can be hard for some students, especially those living in condos or apartments where they don’t have much space. Some parents and guardians have found ways to work around these issues, but it has been an obstacle for some students. 

The second-grade students spend an average of two to three hours on academic work every day in order to keep them engaged and to give them structure within a weekday. Sometimes periods end up being shorter than displayed on the schedule, since students finish their work before the end of the class. There are no homework assignments for students to complete after school.

Those in charge of the lower school’s schedule have been making sure that students have a healthy balance between online and offline work. 

“Screen time really should be limited,” Willett said, “We are trying to keep our work time to 20-30 minutes per session. For younger students, it should be even less.”

 In order to maintain this balance, second-grade teachers sent out packets containing material from subjects such as math, word study, and more. These were created as assignments students can do offline so they don’t have to be constantly staring at a screen in order to complete their work.

Throughout the many difficulties distance learning has presented, there is one issue that can’t be fixed by teaching oneself new technology. Within the classroom teachers are always able to tell if a student is not understanding a concept. Through the screen, the teachers are able to ask the students to show their work but are unable to see how much a guardian in their life has helped them complete it. It is hard to tell what students have done independently and what students have done with the help of an adult.

Teachers throughout the lower school have been trying their best to teach in the most understandable way possible through the barrier of a screen and keep students committed and focused. “Keeping anyone engaged requires a variety of methods,” the first grade team said in a statement, “The biggest one is letting first graders know that distance doesn’t negate our love for them, our desire to support them, care about them and for them to know we are on this journey together.”