This academic year ended on a really sober note.
As we entered the second week of March the Corona pandemic made its presence felt all over India. The ICSE and ISC Board examinations had also commenced by then. In order to ascertain the safety of young students, it was decided to close all the schools. Even my school was closed and we, teachers began work from home.
For at least a week before the school closed, we teachers made our kids aware of the threat of the virus and encouraged them to follow safety measures. In order to maintain personal cleanliness, we told the children to carry soap or hand wash and/ or sanitizers to use whenever they had to use the washroom. I can't tell you how excited the children were to bring these to school. All through the day someone or the other took the liberty to use the sanitizer while the class was in progress. The smell wafted around the whole class for the day.During break time they had the most fun. They compared their stock and spent a good time at the taps.They had to reminded that they also had to eat their lunch. These very children who had to be reminded time and again to carry handkerchiefs everyday to school, never forgot to bring these hand washes and sanitizers! Selective memory at its best!
To make the atmosphere lighter with the threat of the virus looming large, I taught them a few new games that they could play during the break time.I am fortunate to be a teacher as the joy and excitement on their faces when the kids play games is worth watching. It was fun to see them rolling in laughter or simply scream out aloud as they played, fought, made up and thoroughly enjoyed themselves in gay abandon. They looked like they had no care in the world. It made me wish we adults too could learn to enjoy ourselves like this forgetting our worries at times.
The announcement of the closure of school came unexpectedly so we could not even end the academic year properly as we usually did due to the prevailing situation. This is the time when we, as teachers enjoy the most with the children as we bond with them for the whole year. Sadly, we could only see them till the second week of March , after which we started sending them worksheets to be done at home.You need to be a teacher to understand how we miss the students, especially when school closes abruptly like this.
The profile work, mark sheets ,worksheets and manual work kept me busy at home.The students too had their hands full with daily worksheets to solve. It was then announced that we would be conducting video lessons for the classes on Zoom App. It was a new experience for teachers and students alike. Once we logged in for the video session , it was really exciting. They were so thrilled to see me and so were their parents. It is another feeling altogether seeing your students after a long time. Imagine a video lesson for 42 nine to ten year old kids! It was cacophony!Their enthusiasm was infectious. Even their parents, came to have a look and say hello to their teacher as most of them were working from home too .They took some time to settle down for their lesson as they were excited to see their classmates.They told me they wanted to come to school and missed school.They talked without a pause, asking how I was, when school was going to start again, what about the examinations, was I going to school.......so many queries!
Finally, after answering them satisfactorily the video lesson began. It was a pleasant change to teach them like this, something new for us, but we enjoyed it. After the goodbyes I realized how much I had missed my kids. They had brought a smile on my face. Hopefully I will meet them again when they come to take their profiles in April. Waiting to see their smiling faces!
How I wish this academic year had not ended abruptly like this. But then situations like these call for actions that take into consideration the safety of all.
As we entered the second week of March the Corona pandemic made its presence felt all over India. The ICSE and ISC Board examinations had also commenced by then. In order to ascertain the safety of young students, it was decided to close all the schools. Even my school was closed and we, teachers began work from home.
For at least a week before the school closed, we teachers made our kids aware of the threat of the virus and encouraged them to follow safety measures. In order to maintain personal cleanliness, we told the children to carry soap or hand wash and/ or sanitizers to use whenever they had to use the washroom. I can't tell you how excited the children were to bring these to school. All through the day someone or the other took the liberty to use the sanitizer while the class was in progress. The smell wafted around the whole class for the day.During break time they had the most fun. They compared their stock and spent a good time at the taps.They had to reminded that they also had to eat their lunch. These very children who had to be reminded time and again to carry handkerchiefs everyday to school, never forgot to bring these hand washes and sanitizers! Selective memory at its best!
To make the atmosphere lighter with the threat of the virus looming large, I taught them a few new games that they could play during the break time.I am fortunate to be a teacher as the joy and excitement on their faces when the kids play games is worth watching. It was fun to see them rolling in laughter or simply scream out aloud as they played, fought, made up and thoroughly enjoyed themselves in gay abandon. They looked like they had no care in the world. It made me wish we adults too could learn to enjoy ourselves like this forgetting our worries at times.
The announcement of the closure of school came unexpectedly so we could not even end the academic year properly as we usually did due to the prevailing situation. This is the time when we, as teachers enjoy the most with the children as we bond with them for the whole year. Sadly, we could only see them till the second week of March , after which we started sending them worksheets to be done at home.You need to be a teacher to understand how we miss the students, especially when school closes abruptly like this.
The profile work, mark sheets ,worksheets and manual work kept me busy at home.The students too had their hands full with daily worksheets to solve. It was then announced that we would be conducting video lessons for the classes on Zoom App. It was a new experience for teachers and students alike. Once we logged in for the video session , it was really exciting. They were so thrilled to see me and so were their parents. It is another feeling altogether seeing your students after a long time. Imagine a video lesson for 42 nine to ten year old kids! It was cacophony!Their enthusiasm was infectious. Even their parents, came to have a look and say hello to their teacher as most of them were working from home too .They took some time to settle down for their lesson as they were excited to see their classmates.They told me they wanted to come to school and missed school.They talked without a pause, asking how I was, when school was going to start again, what about the examinations, was I going to school.......so many queries!
Finally, after answering them satisfactorily the video lesson began. It was a pleasant change to teach them like this, something new for us, but we enjoyed it. After the goodbyes I realized how much I had missed my kids. They had brought a smile on my face. Hopefully I will meet them again when they come to take their profiles in April. Waiting to see their smiling faces!
How I wish this academic year had not ended abruptly like this. But then situations like these call for actions that take into consideration the safety of all.
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