First day of school and no one was dressed in new clothes or had to leave the house. There was arguing, tears, and a couple brothers brawling until I pulled them off of each other. Then quiet descended as they logged onto their classes and their zoom calls began. Funny how back in the spring I thought we might return to school for the last few weeks and here we are in September and not much has changed. Washington is a pretty horrible place to live during a pandemic.
Ethan started his freshman year of high school and is pretty excited to not have to go in person. He’s hit a growth spurt and is hoping to catch up to some of his friends and is thankful for more time to grow. He built himself his own desk in his bedroom and hides out in his room all day during and after school where no one can bug him. My only request is that he makes his bed before school each day because it's in his background (and in our family we make our beds every day as part of being functioning human beings, or at least that's the goal).
Parker started 2nd grade and has a great teacher who has handled the remote learning so well. I wondered how these little kids would sit in front of their screens all day but they do a lot of activities on their own. After only a couple weeks of school he has learned how to navigate Zoom like a champ, can lead a discussion in a breakout room, and knows exactly how much he can get away with by turning off his camera. I have to watch this kid like a hawk! I have no idea how working parents would navigate this.
Marcus is a junior and definitely the most frustrated with remote learning. He set up a table in the den and enjoys laying on the couch behind him when things get boring. Without early morning seminary he's not nearly as sleepy in school. He keeps his camera on most of the time and tries to engage with his teachers and classmates but he says most students don't talk or show their faces. He is hoping to go to school in UT next semester if he can't play lacrosse again here. He is keeping busy working out, training people (they pay him!), and looking for a job. He still manages to have a social life which makes everyone happy.
Landon started 5th grade. He misses his friends, recess, and PE but is pretty happy to be using a computer all day and thinks the new gaming headphones he wears are the coolest. I bought them after a friend who homeschools her kids by choice, recommended them for their good microphones, sound quality, and comfort level. Sadly they’re meant to be worn for hours at a time and they definitely are. Landon has a group of neighborhood boys he hangs out with and they are constantly together any time they finish their work and have a break. Sadly, none of their schedules have recesses that coincide (they are a blend of public and private schools), but they usually manage a few minutes together during the day until they finish in the afternoon.
I am happy to report that after a few weeks of this new "normal" that things are going better than I expected. I definitely don't think my kids will learn nearly as much as they would have but at least they are being held accountable for attendance and are required to do all their work. Some days things go smoothly and sometimes I want to cry for myself. Mostly because I have to keep the little boys on track while Henry is fighting for my attention. Toddlers make almost everything so much harder!
The other hard thing is keeping track of when the kids need to log back on. For example, Parker's teacher will tell him to log off Zoom and silently read so he has to keep track of when to return to class by logging back on. We use a lot of timers and alarms all day long to keep him on track. Unfortunately they don't work so well if he's outside playing. The second day of school I found myself riding my bike around the neighborhood yelling at the top of my lungs for him. He finally appeared fifteen minutes later after playing in the woods and missed half of his math lesson. I was so mad! Marcus and Ethan have lunch at the same time, which starts earlier than the elementary boys so that makes it hard when there's lots of commotion in the kitchen and the little boys are still trying to endure thirty more minutes of school. But then they go back to class and the little boys are still eating lunch and having "recess." I've heard Marcus say multiple times, "Sorry, I have four little brothers at home," as he apologizes for the noise in his background. But we are getting by.
Thankfully everyone has laptops from the school and we have a hot spot so the wi-fi is fairly reliable, but definitely not always. On the rare occasion when Henry plays by himself, I want to cry tears of joy that I can clean up the kitchen before it's time for lunch. The nice weather also helps since the boys can play outside with their friends. I'm trying not to think about how the rainy months ahead will drastically affect the way we cope with this new life. It's going to get ugly.
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