Parents adjust to teaching at home

Image
  • (Clockwise from top) Penelope Spiegel, Jon Luke Farmer, Liam Hale, Luke Hale and Mya Hale work on lessons at home.
    (Clockwise from top) Penelope Spiegel, Jon Luke Farmer, Liam Hale, Luke Hale and Mya Hale work on lessons at home.
  • Snyder Primary School first grader Morgan Hale worked out of her math book.
    Snyder Primary School first grader Morgan Hale worked out of her math book.
Body

With all Texas schools ordered to close until at least the end of April, many parents find themselves in a role that they may not have expected: Teacher. For parents with younger students, the role can add to the stress of trying to maintain their normal lives as much as they can during the pandemic.
“I am working from home since the Stay Home, Stay Safe order went into effect,” Sheila Hale said. Her daughter is Snyder Primary School first grader Morgan Hale. “We manage by our activities by working with a schedule. Our lives need structure and routine so we conduct our lives as if things haven’t changed except the location.”
While lessons from Snyder ISD is online, Sheila has been trying to incorporate different activities into Morgan’s  daily schedule.
“We supplement our learning with online educational tools to keep learning fun and engaging. We also spend time outside learning about our garden and take time to cook together. Mostly we are just making the most of this time together but I’m learning that teaching doesn’t have to be constrained to the classroom,” she said.
Despite the separation between students and their teachers, websites like Zoom and Skype have made it possible for teachers and students to stay connected. Sheila said that this is what her child enjoys most about remote learning.
“I believe she does enjoy the programs being used, because the variety is fun, but she misses the environment of the in-class learning experience. She most looks forward to interaction through Zoom with her class but loves seeing all the videos of educators in her school,” Sheila said.
Despite the efforts to make the new way of school as normal and educational as possible, Sheila still has worries about remote learning.
“The thing that is most stressful to me is the fear of inadequacy. I’m not an educational professional nor did I ever intend to be and I worry that what I’m able to provide for my child will not be enough to prepare her to move to second grade. At the end of the day I am thankful for the many tools and resources Snyder ISD has provided for parents,” she said.
They aren’t the only family trying to navigate homeschooling. Nikki Hale, who has children in pre-k, first and fifth grades, is trying to find the balance of being a mother and a teacher. She also looks after other students.
“So far, the most stressful thing about this is that I’m not a teacher. I worry about them learning everything that they need to because there are some things that I don’t know how to do. It’s also hard getting them to see me as not just mom, but their teacher, too. Kids do treat their parents and teachers differently,” she said.
Nikki’s children are students at Snyder Christian School. Classroom lessons are completed with work books and through the online platform Abeka, a Christian-based curriculum platform. 
“During the morning, we do our school work. They took all of their work books home for spring break, so they work through those and then use Abeka when they want to, usually if they need something explained more. We try to get all of our work done in the mornings so by lunch the can go outside and play or do other activities,” Nikki said. 
Nikki, along with her children, is also a student. She is currently working toward a degree in education from LeTourneau University.
“It was really difficult figuring out how to teach them, because I’m also trying to do my school work. The first few days were really hard, but I learned that if I work on my stuff while they’re working on theirs, I can get stuff done better.”
“Having the kids around all day can get pretty stressful. I used to be able to go drop them off at my parents’ house and go to Walmart and run errands for a couple of hours. Now that’s not happening. But we are all working through it,” she said.
Like Sheila, Nikki is looking for lessons outside of the normal curriculum to keep her children entertained and engaged. One source of entertainment has been Josh Gad, who voiced Olaf in the Disney movie Frozen, and is posting himself reading books on Twitter. Teachers have also been keeping in touch through Zoom.
 “My son’s pre-k teacher has a Zoom meeting with the class where she’ll read to him, and he also gets to see his friends. He really enjoys getting to do that,” she said.
Despite the inconveniences and worries about homeschooling their kids for the rest of the semester, both mothers think that during the pandemic, homeschooling is the best option.
“This is absolutely the best decision. It’s difficult, but it’s what’s best for the safety and health of the kids,” Nikki said.
“I do think the remote learning was the best decision. Our campus is quite large at almost 1,000 students and with so many in such close proximity this could have easily become a disastrous situation quickly. Snyder ISD has done a great job at looking out for the health and well-being of all students and I couldn’t be more proud of our district and everyone who has worked tirelessly to ensure our student educational needs are met,” Sheila said.