Here we are, the first week in January. 20 weeks into the school year. My middle schooler has attended 29 days of school, and my other 3 kids, 32 days of school, since August. This breaks my heart. For the first few weeks, I kept telling myself that our 3 days a week at home would get better. They had to. We would get in a routine and figure out how to make this run smoothly. 20 weeks into the school year, and that hasn’t happened. With 4 kids, there are too many variables. We have had 3 days with no screaming or crying. My kids hate learning at home, and recently, are starting to hate going to school twice a week now, as well. My kindergartner, who would beg to go to preschool last year on Saturdays because she loved it so much, is now crying at night before she goes to school, crying in the morning before she goes to school, and crying at school. I can’t get my second grader to read or write at home. He is falling behind and the more I try to encourage him, the more fits he throws. It’s so hard to watch my social kids, who LOVED school prior to this year, not want anything to do with school these days. Sadly, their personalities are changing.
Today, January 5, my 6th grade son had 20 minutes of school work to complete- for the entire day. After not being in school for 3 weeks because of the holiday (and because of the 12/17 snow day). How will he be motivated in the future, to attend school for 8 hours a day, and come home after sports to complete a few hours of homework?
At a board meeting in the summer, I recall a board member saying- York Suburban can sit back and watch how it goes with the majority of other schools in York having the option to go back for 5 days. They can be the guinea pigs. Well, 20 weeks into the school year, I think it’s safe to say that going back with a full-time option is quite safe and attainable, as most schools in York, Lancaster, and Lebanon are doing just this. If schools have to close here and there, so be it, we know we are equipped to handle the learning from home during that time (as the middle school and high school already have).
I am scared when I think of the effects this pandemic, along with this hybrid schedule of going to school for 2 days a week, is going to have on our kids. We can say kids are resilient all we want, and that they will bounce back. But from what I am seeing with my kids, and what I’ve heard from countless other parents, I don’t fully believe that anymore. This will have lasting effects on our kids- anxiety, depression, unhealthy coping mechanisms, emotional and mental health issues. Let’s give them some normal back.
My editor wrote this and I felt it needed to be shared with more people than she intended to see it. JB
