By Audrey Lovell, Staff Writer
Fifth grade was a pretty important year for most of us. We were the oldest kids in our school. We got to sit with our friends at lunch and enjoy movie nights in the gym. At Kitty Hawk Elementary, we danced and sang in the talent show with our friends.
And don’t forget about recess. Almost every day, we would play kickball to practice for the big tournament at the end of the year – even though some of our classes were the worst at kickball and didn’t score a single run.
This year’s fifth-graders aren’t getting that experience. “Beeeep” goes the alarm at 7:45 a.m. After going to the kitchen and eating breakfast, you sit down at the dining room table and begin learning – virtually.
It’s been the new routine for elementary schoolers this year and will continue to be so until second quarter finally starts in a few weeks. There’s no recess, no sitting at the lunch table with friends and no fun “specials” classes. The new normal is sitting in front of an open Chromebook all day.
This new normal has presented its challenges to elementary students, but teachers are still going above and beyond to make these students’ elementary school experience special.
“They can go on scavenger hunts around their house, go outside to do P.E. and work on art projects,” Kitty Hawk Elementary School Librarian Ellen Bryson said.
Not only does online learning offer new activities in students’ homes, but it also uses different sites and programs to help students learn the same material they would learn in regular school, while still trying to keep them interested.
“They are truly enjoying the different educational apps that we have provided such as SeeSaw, DreamBox and Raz Kids,” KHES first-grade teacher Melissa Bender said.
Although sitting in front of a screen all day doesn’t sound appealing, it is teaching students more and more about items they may use every day, like their Chromebooks.
“One advantage is that the students will become very familiar with technology,” Bender said.
Video calling in class is helpful in teaching students what they need to learn. But what happens if misbehavior that happens sometimes in school is transferred to online learning? While a typical school day might consist of a teacher reprimanding students for talking or making too much noise, with virtual meetings such as Google Meet, a simple click of the mute button does the trick.
“As a teacher, it’s nice because there are no discipline problems,” Bryson said.
And with everyone on mute except for the teacher or the student who is presenting, they can be listened to by everyone in the class.
“The kids seem to like having ‘the stage’ and everyone else being muted when they talk so they can really be listened to,” Bryson said.
Students also are becoming more independent by making sure their work is turned in by its due date. The students choose when they want to do their work and when they want free time.
“They have quite a bit of flexibility in their schedule and can complete the work at a time that works for them and their family,” KHES fifth-grade teacher Kimberly Whitehurst said.
Although these advantages may make you think, “Online school sounds easy!” it does come with its downsides. A big disadvantage is the lack of interaction with friends and peers.
“Social interaction is just as important as academic learning and I hope families are finding creative ways to help the students stay socially engaged,” Bender said.
Online meetings may be the only form of communication for some kids right now, and social interaction may be limited to the people you see walking around your neighborhood or shoppers at a grocery store.
“She missed a lot of social interaction,” said Lee Hux said, parent of Nags Head Elementary student Ashlyn Hux.
There are plenty of other challenges that come about with online learning.
“The biggest issue I have had with remote learning is internet connectivity,” Whitehurst said. “Signals get dropped and this can cause major frustrations with students.”
Not only is weak internet a cause of disconnection, but the lack of face-to-face teaching also causes disconnection when it comes to fully understanding the material.
“It’s hard for teachers to see if kids are ‘getting it’ since they can’t scan the crowd as easily as in person,” Bryson said.
Teachers always encourage asking questions; however, students may feel embarrassed or not know how to get in contact with their teacher to get the academic help they need. And teachers can only do so much to make online learning exciting.
“What I miss the most is just simply being around the students,” Bender said. “When they are near, you can feel their energy and enthusiasm for learning.”
Although everyone misses normal school, teachers are still doing their best to make it fun, for as long as they have to.
“I miss the hugs and high fives throughout the day,” Whitehurst said. “You can still give encouragement and praise to students virtually, but it just isn’t the same.”
Sophomore Audrey Lovell can be contacted at 23lovellau71@daretolearn.org.
