Indian Creek High Schools’ band director has had to resort to unorthodox methods to keep her class going in the face of a pandemic.
Amy Heavilin is used to gathering in a room with 81 band members split into two groups. Now, she is working with students individually, asking them to send her videos of them playing their instruments to keep some sense of continuity, Heavilin said.
Last week, Indian Creek schools made the decision to close starting Monday, as did the other three Johnson County school districts that were not on spring break this week: Franklin, Center Grove and Clark-Pleasant schools. All schools have switched to an eLearning method, meaning students are completing lessons online to practice social distancing due to growing concerns about the spread of the coronavirus.
Educators must resort to virtual learning for at least the next six weeks. On Thursday, Gov. Eric Holcomb mandated schools remain closed until at least May 1, with the possibility that will be pushed out to the end of the school year.
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At Custer Baker Intermediate School, students in Stacy Hollis’ fifth-grade English Language Arts class were treated to videos of her giving instructions for the day’s lessons in front of the Palace of Versailles on Monday, and a beach in Ireland for St. Patrick’s Day. On Thursday, she touched base while floating in outer space, Hollis said.
Hollis spruced up her lessons with the help of her son, a senior at Franklin Community High School, who set up a green screen in the kitchen using a curtain rod.
Although it’s encouraging creativity and innovation by teachers and their students, eLearning has its challenges, she said.
“I would say I’m missing work from about a third of my kids,” Hollis said. “I’m calling home, sending emails to parents and students. I’m worrying about the kids I’m not reaching.”
Creekside Elementary School second-grade teacher Andrea Daudy is concerned she won’t be able to help students who don’t have a great support system at home, Daudy said.
“I worry not all students have the same level of support at home, that some needs are not being met,” Daudy said. “When I’m with the kids all day, I can easily see if not all their needs are being met. When I’m not with them all day, I worry some kids are struggling with things that might fall through the cracks, because we’re not seeing them.”
Another challenge is the unprecedented nature of the coronavirus outbreak.
Most teachers are using Google Classroom to connect with their students each day, but unlike in other instances of eLearning, which have traditionally involved one or two days away from school due to weather, there is no set end date for the virus.
Amy Grady teaches fifth grade at Break-O-Day Elementary School. Even for a veteran with 27 years of teaching experience under her belt, this is uncharted territory, Grady said.
“Kids are scared because this is something different and we’re just trying to figure this out. The teachers on the fifth grade team, we’re been texting and talking a lot this week,” Grady said.
“I’ve never experienced something like this. It was scary after 9/11, but that feeling — a week of not wanting to leave the house and worrying about getting groceries — only lasted a week. This is scary because it seems like it’s going to be six to eight weeks, at least.”
At the Brenton household in Franklin, Creekside Elementary second grader Milo Brenton completed lessons on his computer to start the day Wednesday. His mother, Kelly Brenton, has some familiarity with eLearning, as her older son, Logan Brenton, attended online school through Indiana Connections Academy. Creekside is keeping students active by including physical education among its virtual offerings, Brenton said.
“Practically overnight, teachers have lessons for kids,” she said.
Teachers are recording interactive videos, going through math lessons and working through problems on a worksheet with the kids, Brenton said.
"On Monday, they had a (physical education) lesson. We did a video from the living room. They stand up and do stretches together. (On Tuesday), a school counselor had a video of herself reading a book about finding happiness no matter the situation.”
Even from afar, teachers are noticing students become anxious, and have also taken it upon themselves to ease some of their concerns about the coronavirus. A to educating students about the virus is to compare it to something they are familiar with, said Lana Jochim, a fifth grade science teacher at Custer Baker Intermediate School.
“We talked about it before we left school,” Jochim said. “I was trying to calm the kids. It’s starting to become hysteria and kids don’t need to feel that."
