The changes in our classrooms will be visible to the eye, and the heart. There will be smaller group sizes, more space between children, less hugging, more cleaning, less choices on the shelves, and more one on one experiences. Is it all bad? Have teachers been asking for more support in their classroom and smaller group sizes?
I believe that there is a big gap between the needs of parents and the needs of teachers inside the classroom. As we love our jobs, and the opportunity to change the world, one child, at a time, we have needed more support for a very long time. There is a gap between the working parent's needs of childcare, school, and after school programs. Who should be affected because of this?
Children need their social time that school may bring for some, and so do independent activities that are done after school hours as well. How will this change in the future? How will Fall look, and will it be that way for a while, or forever? The guidelines that are coming out to keep children and their families safe, mean less time at school, and more time at home. How will we balance this as a society when parents have to work?
I think we need to look at a deeper problem, that for the majority, both parents have to work to meet ends meet, so if both parents are at work, who is watching their children with this new system of school routine and time? Should we look into nannies, or traveling teachers, for the times that the children are not at school? Most children probably won't go back to school. Homeschooling will be the new way of getting an education. How will this affect the society?
We are slowly opening our preschool to families that truly need the care through the month of June and possibly July. There has been so much change in the classroom with routine, cleaning, mask-wearing, etc. I am truly interested to see the benefits and the shortcomings that the changes will show.
The shelves are simply set out with plastic toys and manipulatives for children to choose from. One child at a time, and when they are finished with the activity, the child gives the activity to a teacher, so the toy can be put in the disinfecting bin and replaced with another disinfected activity choice. The children have their own art boxes, own playdough bags, and even their own chairs labeled with their name. They have to wear masks and wash their hands more frequently than before. They are reminded about space, and circle times are spread out and less intimate, is this the new way in a preschool room?
We have needed some changes inside the classroom, but how do we meet those needs, keeping the needs of the families in mind as well. Teachers need more recognition and pay, they are essential to our communities, yet our voices are not being heard, Will they be recognized at this time? Is this a good thing for teachers? Is this a good thing for parents? How will this all affect our society?
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