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Remote Learning: Rethinking Academic Pods and Helping Those Most in Need

Posted on July 27, 2020 | Leave a comment

When many schools across the U.S. announced that they would continue to rely on distance learning, at least partially, until schools are able to reopen safely, some parents, especially those with means, went into overdrive to organize small-group “pods” for learning and socialization. It’s hard to cast aspersions on any parent, most of whom are already profoundly stretched by juggling the demands of work, household, children and school during this extraordinary time. Yet, a sad consequence of the pods, some of which are able to hire tutors, is that they will further exacerbate the yawning equity gap that already exists in schools and in virtually all our systems, even during “normal” times.

Here are just a few things that happen to lower-income children* during the pandemic, and those whose parents lack the time and means to create and manage a pod:

  • Food insecurity when school meals end
  • Lack of internet access to do classwork
  • Lack of supervision when parents are working
  • Lack of proper work space
  • Little or no socialization with peers
  • Scarce outdoor or physical activity
  • Academic and social progress falls further behind

*also rural children, children with special needs, those whose parents don’t speak fluent English or understand the lessons, and more

Educational and other forms of inequity is a huge issue and one I’m passionate about. In that spirit, I’d like to offer a few alternatives to the way the 2020-2021 academic year seems to be shaping up.

Acknowledge the hard work of teachers and parents

All teachers and parents have been heroes. They’ve devoted countless hours and done the best possible work to keep kids educated, occupied and safe, in an exceedingly frightening, ever-changing and uncertain time–often without fanfare or thanks. Teachers have, as usual, had to put in not only extra time but additional personal expense, many while their own kids are at home. Hats off to all.

Rethink the concept of “left behind”

I’ve long thought that the metrics of school academics are skewed to the very top achievers, causing stress and burnout for the rest. Because the entire U.S. is affected by this public health crisis, this would be a great time to pause and reconsider the important aspects of education and when it would be important to learn them. 4th grade isn’t going to look the same this year as it did last year, so why should we use outdated benchmarks as to what a 4th grader should achieve?

Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers (and the closest we have to a national leader on this issue) proposes that we think of the next school year as a bridge year, and begin by addressing the social-emotional needs of children, even before the academic ones.

To that point, parents might wish to form social pods with a few families, to meet (perhaps outdoors) with a rotating parent from the group. This solution provides kids with important interaction with peers, for socialization and learning. (Yes, learning.) Children, especially preschoolers, learn through play, so perhaps this anomalous year will allow us to retire the outdated idea of kindergarten readiness, while allowing older kids to interact for their mental and physical health and stimulation.

Learn outside the box

Schools will still likely provide curriculum, in the form of lectures, assignments and worksheets, but what about the kinds of things that can be taught at home? This could be a great time for kids to explore independent projects and interests. Some ideas:

  • Join a citizen science project at home. Or keep a journal for a month to record the phases of the moon or observations in the neighborhood or out the window.
  • Prepare food with a parent to learn some planning and math skills by considering steps and measuring ingredients.
  • Watch a movie about a different period in history and talk about it afterward.
  • Interview family members and write/ draw their stories or make a family tree
  • Teach your kids about financial literacy, something they will need in life that they won’t likely get in school.
  • As 2020 is an election year, take the time to learn about government and voting and perhaps be a more engaged citizen.
  • Read, draw, take walks, play games, cuddle. Do some of the things you think you don’t have time for normally.

Support organizations that are closing the education equity gap

Thankfully, through public and private support, some organizations are rising to the meet the tremendous gap in education opportunities during Covid-19. For instance, the city of San Francisco is refitting libraries, community centers and other public buildings into staffed learning hubs, where young students most in need can access digital classwork and receive help.

Here are some individual organizations that you can help:

Oakland Reach City Wide Virtual Hub is a wonderful model that provides online learning, enrichment and community for the most in need and at risk and pays families to participate. Classes are taught be skilled teachers, and families learn, too, in an effort to close learning gaps at a time when they would only widen otherwise. Read more about Oakland Reach.

Adopt a Classroom’s Disaster Relief Fund helps those across the U.S. who are most immediately in need of technology, supplies, PPE and more, due to Covid-19.

Communities in Schools helps those most in need of food, medical, financial and technological assistance in 25 states and D.C.

First Book delivers books to children around the U.S. who don’t have books or internet access.

The Intercultural Development Research Association is a long-time San Antonio organization that offers assistance to those most in need, in English and Spanish.

National Digital Computer Alliance redistributes donated computers to those in need.

If you wish to help in a specific geographic region try Googling covid relief fund or community foundation and the name of the region.

Support groups that are helping in other ways

This is an excellent and thorough resource from CNN for helping and getting many different kinds of help during the coronovirus crisis–including food, medical supplies, international aid, and support for small businesses, restaurant workers, homeless people, arts organizations and more.

The JFCS Community Emergency Fund helps seniors, families and those most in need, with food, visits, therapy and more, in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Share information and resources

The Center for Children and Youth offers virtual therapy for children, remote parent consultations, online parenting workshops, and professional support for clinicians.

Read 6 Tips for Homeschooling During Coronavirus from NPR.

Read about Creating a Home Classroom for kids with sensory processing or other challenges, from the Center for Children and Youth.

Read 11 Tips to Help your Teen Succeed at Online Learning, from a college senior.

This is an excellent piece from Turn it In that offers with many ideas about adjusting distance learning to make it more inclusive and successful for more students.

This Chalkbeat piece shares national data and takeaways about distance learning in spring, 2020.

NPR outlines some of the gaps that occurred during remote learning.

This crisis has made it abundantly clear that we are all interconnected and need to work together toward solutions. It also provides an opportunity to rethink outdated norms and create greater equity, in education and elsewhere.

 

Special note to incoming college students: I’m so sorry your high school senior year and entrance to college have been so disappointing. There’s no way to sugar-coat this situation. While some are choosing to take a gap year, many counselors are advising to power through your least desirable required courses online to get them over with, especially if your gap year doesn’t have a strong, particular purpose. You will return to normal on-campus life at some point and have college experiences with your peers.

Here are some tips for Self-care and Wellness for Students during Covid-19, from the Foundation for CA Community Colleges.

Wishing educational success for all, and peace to parents and students, in whatever personal choices they make.

Photos: Pexels Public Domain

 

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American Academy of Pediatrics Advocates Recess for Kids: try these games!

Posted on January 8, 2013 | 4 comments

Even as some parents and schools try to schedule as many academics and extracurriculars into their children’s lives as possible, at times to the detriment of even the briefest school recess, The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has released a policy statement that recognizes the value of recess to every aspect of children’s lives. The AAP wrote:

Recess during school offers children cognitive, social, emotional, and physical benefits they don’t get through academics alone.

According to the AAP:

  • Recess is “a necessary break in the day” and “should not be withheld for academic or punitive reasons.”
  • Recess offers important breaks from concentrated classroom work, which allow children to be “more attentive and more productive in the classroom.”
  • Recess “promotes social and emotional learning and development” through “peer interactions in which they practice and role play essential social skills.” Children learn negotiation, cooperation, sharing, and problem solving, as well as coping skills, such as perseverance and self-control.
  • Recess offers benefits that are “unique from, and a complement to, physical education — not a substitute for it.”
  • Recess can help offset risks to childhood obesity.

The AAP also noted that some schools cite safety issues as a barrier to recess and free play and offers steps to protect children while offering free and unstructured  play.

The AAP statement provides a large boost to those who have been advocating for recess and free play, in the face of calls for more academic and scheduled time for children. Last year, an important study published by the AAP revealed that pre-school children are far too sedentary for their physical and psychological health. The recent policy statement notes that “even minor movement during recess counterbalances sedentary time at school and at home.”

Read the complete AAP Policy Statement on The Crucial Role of Recess in School.

Many of us grew up with free play and recess games, some of which were made up on the spot, and some of which we learned from others. Here are a few games that kids (and even parents and teachers) may not know, which can add to recess and other fun and play. Many more playground and other game instructions can be found in my book, Fed Up with Frenzy: Slow Parenting in a Fast-Moving World.

Playground Games

These fun, easy games require little or no equipment and have been creating memories for generations.

Duck, Duck, Goose

South Asians know it as Kho Kho, Ghanaians as Antoakyire. German children play a version called Plumpsack, which involves dropping a handkerchief at one player’s spot. Young children play this timeless game around the world.

Players sit in a circle, facing each other. Choose a player to be It. It walks around the outside of the circle, tapping each person on the head and saying, for each tap, “duck”, “duck”, “duck”. Finally, It taps a person on the head and says, “goose” and begins to run around the outside of the circle. The person who is tapped as a goose gets up and chases It around the circle. If the goose is able to tap It before he or she sits down in the goose’s spot, then that person is It again. If the goose does not tag It, then the goose becomes the new “it”.

Red Light, Green Light

Another game played around the world, Red Light, Green Light has many charming variations. In the Czech Republic, it’s called, Cukr, káva, limonáda, čaj, rum, bum! (“Sugar, coffee, lemonade, tea, rum, boom!”)

One player is chosen to be the stoplight. That person turns his or her back to the group, which forms a line approximately 30–90′  away (depending on the ages of players). The stoplight calls out, “Green light!” and the players advance toward the player who is the stoplight as quickly as they can. When the stoplight wishes, he or she calls out, “Red light!” while turning around to see the runners. The runners must stop immediately. Any player caught moving after a call of “red light” has to go back to the starting line. “Green lights” and “red lights” are repeated until the first player reaches and tags the stoplight and is declared the winner. If all the players are out before they reach the stoplight, then the stoplight wins that round. The winner becomes the new stoplight.

Four Square

Not sure what to do with that four-square court painted on your school playground? This classic game couldn’t be easier or more inclusive. If you don’t have a four-square court, you can easily draw your own with chalk.

You’ll need:

A standard-size rubber playground ball
A court, or chalk to draw one

If there isn’t a court, draw a large square, approximately 16′ × 16′. Divide that into four squares, each 8′ × 8′. Letter the squares clockwise, from A to D. The player in the A square begins by bouncing the ball once in his or her own square, then hitting it underhand so it bounces into the D square. The receiving player then hits the ball into another square, with play continuing until the ball bounces more than once or goes out of bounds. When that happens, the player who didn’t hit the ball in time, or hit it out of bounds, moves to the D square, and the other players move up in the alphabet. If there are more than four players, a waiting player in line replaces the one who would have moved into the D square, and that player goes to the back of the line. Play continues without anyone having to permanently leave the game.

Blob Tag

There are so many fun tag games, you needn’t limit yourself to basic tag. Try this fun variation:

Once a player is tagged by the person who is It, the two join arms and become a blob, which chases players together to try to tag them. Other players who are tagged also join arms and become part of the blob. Some play a version in which, when the blob reaches four people, two split off to become a new blob. The last person standing alone becomes the new “it.”

Jump-Rope Games

Jumping rope has gone in and out of fashion since ancient Egypt, when both men and women jumped over vines. It wasn’t until the 20th century that jumpers incorporated singsong games and rhymes. Many of these are passed down through the generations like oral history, with different regions using different chants. I learned many of these from my mom and passed them down to my daughter.

You’ll need:

One regular jump rope for one person, or a longer jump rope for two turners to turn while a jumper (or more) jumps.

The jumper jumps over the rope each time it hits the ground. Jumpers can jump in one jump each turn or take one big jump followed by one smaller jump each turn. A turn ends when the jumper fails to jump over the turning rope. The following are classic, easy jump-rope games. They don’t have tunes so much as chants, so they are especially easy to pick up.

A, My Name Is Alice

This is a fun add-on game that also calls for a little creativity and is different every time.

The first jumper starts with the letter A and fills in the blanks in the following sentence, however he or she chooses:

A my name is ____ and my husband’s name is ____ and we live in ____ and we sell ____.

For example: A my name is Alice and my husband’s name is Al and we live in Albuquerque and we sell apples.

If the jumper hasn’t tripped up, he or she moves on to the letter B: B my name is Betty and my husband’s name is Bob and we live in Boise and we sell beans.

Jumpers move through the alphabet as long as their turns last. New jumpers usually start with A, which makes it easy to compare how far each jumper gets, and choose new names.

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear

This jump-rope game is a little more advanced, as it requires players to pantomime the activity they are singing about (to the best of their abilities) as they jump.

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, turn around.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, touch the ground.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, tie your shoe.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, that will do!
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, go upstairs.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, say your prayers.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, turn out the lights.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear, say good-night!

Apples, Peaches, Pears, and Plums

Apples, peaches, pears, and plums.
Tell me when your birthday comes.
January, February, March…

Count one month for each turn of the rope successfully jumped.

I hope you all take the AAP recommendations to heart and enjoy recess and play!

Photos: Susan Sachs Lipman, Let the Children Play

For more information see:

Resources about Play and Slowing
News about Play and Slowing

You might also like:

How to Prepare Kids for Kindergarten? Let Them Play
Slow News: Let the Kids Play
Pre-school and Kindergarten Graduations: Too Much Too Fast?
Movement to Restore Free Play Gains Momentum
Children Opt for the Box Over the Toy
Babies Learn By Playing
New Childrens Book Reminds Us to Play

 

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How to Prepare Kids for Kindergarten? Let them Play

Posted on September 12, 2012 | 3 comments

When German Frederick Froebel created kindergarten in the 1800s, little could he have envisioned what it would become. Those first kindergarten students, indeed the first children to experience early childhood education, learned through play, music, movement, paper-folding and games. Froebel recognized that early childhood was a a period of dramatic brain development during which children thrived when they learned holistically. His work influenced Maria Montessori, Rudolf Steiner (whose work led to Waldorf Schools), and the Reggio Emilia approach to education, all of which are popular and well regarded today.

Kindergarten, as recently as many of our own childhoods, was a laboratory of discovery and wonder, social skills and play. It was not viewed solely as preparation for grade school.

Fast-forward 150+ years since Froebel to arrive at a time in which not only is kindergarten regarded as preparation for grade school, but preschool is considered preparation for kindergarten. Online parent message boards are crammed with questions from anxious parents, asking, “Is my child ready for kindergarten?” Kindergarten readiness tests and commercial kits denote and teach multiple precise skills children should know before starting kindergarten, including the abilities to count from 1 to 10, identify colors, cut with scissors, create rhyming sounds, and skip.

Yes, skip. This piece of information includes the especially ridiculous coda that pre-school children around the U.S. are being taught to skip, in order to prepare them for kindergarten. Sadly, many children do not have enough outdoor play and free time to develop this skill on their own and are now taught it, not as a joyous life skill, but as part of the readiness curriculum.

But what if “readiness curriculum” emphasizes the wrong things? Perhaps our anxieties about “kindergarten readiness” and our rush toward academics for our kids are fueled by our own desires and fears, rather than by education and early childhood theory. We are taught early that there is tremendous competition for college spots and for jobs. Because we’re often busy ourselves, we view time as something to be used efficiently, even and perhaps especially in regard to our children and their childhoods.

In addition, parents today are led to believe that we have to choose between academic preschools and play-based preschools. But what if the play-based schools actually fed children’s academic, social and physical needs and success?  According to studies, that’s exactly what they do.

Professor Jeffrey Trawick-Smith of The Center for Early Childhood Education writes that “Play is necessary for success in school” and that play enhances language and literacy, counting and math, symbolic thought, cooperation, self-awareness and self-control. Longitudinal studies show that even the gains achieved by some academic preschools are largely lost by third or fourth grade.

If that weren’t enough, recent studies also show that today’s preschoolers spend only 2-3% of their time doing vigorous activity. In our rush toward what many of us think of as academic achievement and readiness, we’re actually robbing many young children of the ability to learn the way they do best — through play.

Alison Gopnik, psychology professor and author of The Philosophical Baby: What Children’s Minds Tell Us About Truth, Love, and the Meaning of Life, refers to “guided discovery”, the notion that small children learn best through exploration and interaction, wonder and play. Schools teach mastery, which is wonderful, writes Gopnick, but mastery should follow discovery. She uses an example from baseball:

Routinized learning is not an end in itself. A good coach may well make his players throw the ball to first base 50 times or swing again and again in the batting cage. That will help, but by itself it won’t make a strong player. The game itself — reacting to different pitches, strategizing about base running — requires thought, flexibility and inventiveness.

How do we encourage qualities like thought, flexibility and inventiveness in our young people, the very qualities that underlie later academic and other success? Let them play when they’re young, when their brains are elastic and they learn best through exploration. Encourage various social, physical and other experiences that enhance children’s natural senses of curiosity and wonder. Allow them to move their bodies more, especially in nature when possible, and not be unnecessarily (and unnaturally) sedentary. Studies show that even older elementary students need recess and play and that physical activity helps them perform better academically.

It seems that letting preschoolers be preschoolers is the least — and the most —  we can do for them.

Photos: Let the Children Play, Creative Child, Susan Sachs Lipman, Let the Children Play, Academic Advancement

For more information see:

Resources about Play and Slowing
News about Play and Slowing

You might also be interested in:

Slow News: Let the Kids Play
Pre-school and Kindergarten Graduations: Too Much Too Fast?
Movement to Restore Free Play Gains Momentum
Children Opt for the Box Over the Toy
Babies Learn By Playing
New Childrens Book Reminds Us to Play

 

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Preschool and Kindergarten Graduations: Too Much Too Fast?

Posted on June 4, 2012 | 14 comments

Frederick Froebel‘s invention of kindergarten, in early 1800s Germany, heralded the idea of early childhood education — of reaching children during a period of dramatic brain development and introducing a holistic style of learning through play, music, movement, paperfolding and games. Froebel recognized that children learn differently from one another (the precursor to Multiple Intelligence theory), and that one child may learn best by sorting objects, another by talking with peers, and another through sensory experiences like physical movement and touch. He influenced many schools of early childhood education that are popular and well regarded today.

Kindergarten, as recently as many of our own childhoods, was a laboratory of discovery and social skills, as well as the preparation for grade school.

Fast-forward a century and a half since Froebel’s time to find online parent message boards crammed with questions from anxious parents: “Is my child ready for kindergarten?” There are scores of kindergarten readiness tests and commercial kits, which denote and teach precise skills one should know before starting kindergarten, such as the ability to count from 1-10, identify colors, cut with scissors, create rhyming sounds, and skip. (The last includes the especially ridiculous coda that  preschool children around the country are being taught to skip, in order to prepare them for kindergarten. Sadly, many children do not have enough outdoor play and free time to develop this skill on their own and are now taught it, not as a joyous life skill, but as part of the readiness curriculum.)

Of course, if a child is not ready for today’s kindergarten, by all means, have the child wait a year. My issue is with the sped-up nature of education. The rush toward school and academic curriculum robs many children of the age-appropriate experience of learning through play, discovery and activity. Given the fact that early childhood has accelerated to the degree that my kindergarten has become my daughter’s pre-K, is it any wonder that the ritual of graduation has also trickled down, from high school and college to pre-school?

I don’t believe I had a pre-school or kindergarten graduation. I remember a ritual of autograph books when moving from elementary school to middle. I’m pretty sure there was no middle school graduation either. High school graduation was exceedingly special. I wore a mortarboard cap and gown and screamed with excitement in the school quad, and actually got to attend a Grad Night at Disneyland that ended at dawn.

Perhaps, then, a blend of personal history and a feeling that childhood has dramatically accelerated leads me to think that elaborate preschool graduations that imitate high school and college graduations are silly (not to mention possibly expensive). Don’t get me wrong: I think it’s wonderful, and even helpful, to have an age-appropriate ritual for young children to help them note the fact of their moving on and perhaps address some conscious or subconscious grief and fear. The trappings of diplomas and caps and gowns do none of those things, however, and are another example of a culture that views children as miniature adults (when convenient). Fortunately, there are some simple rituals that might have more meaning for a child and help them ease and celebrate their transition.

This is a ritual that Anna did at her preschool to mark summer and winter solstices. It can be altered to mark a graduation. Have children stand in a circle and hold hands. An adult leader can then lead children to walk around the circle, or can break free and lead them in a spiral to form smaller circles. The children chant:

We circle around,
We circle around,
We circle around the universe,
Wearing our long tail feathers
As we fly.

I find this a gentle ritual that is symbolic of the movement of time and of change. Because small children make the circle with their bodies, I believe that act has more meaning for them than receiving a piece of paper (that many can’t even read).

Another ritual can be taken from Girl Scouts: The bridging ceremony is typically done when scouts “bridge” from one age-group level to another. They symbolize their passage by walking over a bridge (footbridges work well), under an archway, through a path or over stepping stones. Symbolic bridges can also be created with rows of ribbons, chalk or flowerpots on a lawn or in a driveway. Archways can be created with people’s arms. Sometimes older children greet the ones who bridge over. Bridging is a simple, lovely and meaningful ceremony.

What do you think of formal graduations from preschool? Do you have a favorite alternative?

Photos: Let the Children Play, Quiqle. Cartoon: Fault Lines, by Lippy, Creative Child, Academic Advancement.

 

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