Getting Outside

I don’t love my classroom this year. Covid setup means that my kids are slammed to every corner as much as possible, and that’s not great. But combining that with the fact that three of my walls are made of movable panels means that I only have plugs on one wall. It’s not great.

There’s one completely wonderful thing, though. We have a door to the outdoors, and I love that so much. Again, with the Covid setup, my kids are generally stuck in a pretty rigid formation without a lot of movement. I’m doing my best to project through my mask, and across this awful classroom landscape. But then we open the door.

The kids know that if the weather’s not too hot, not too cold, and not raining, we can go outside to work together. Kids who do their social studies reading solo — and distanced — are allowed to unmask. Kids who keep them on are allowed to work together a lot closer than normal. Both of these things are a literal breath of fresh air for my kids.

I’m right there with them. I’ll take a little of the time away from them, to allow them time to read and problem solve, and figure things out independently. It’s great, but then I also can drop the mask for a few, and that’s great, too. After a couple of minutes, I mask back up, and I’m able to make the rounds so much better than I’m able to inside.

I’m normally a big believer in finding reasons, excuses, and time to get the kids outside. This year, it means a whole lot more. They need it, I need it. I’m so grateful for the opportunity, and I’m so grateful for the pleasant weather!