First Week back in Classes

This week was my first week back in classes across the Te Hiku cluster. Most of the class numbers are about half to three quarters some parents are waiting to level 1 before they are sending back their children to school. For tracking purposes, I am signing in and out of schools which is just like I use to. In some schools, I am signing in and out of each class, I am going into. The other major requirement is sanitizing my hands as I enter each classroom and when I leave. Students are separated from each other by a meter in the junior classes not so much. There are different levels of health and safety between the schools. Some of the students are not allowed to use the equipment as they would need to be sterilized after each use. But the students themselves are very happy to be back and have got straight back into learning. Somewhere a bit anxious to begin with, but with reassurance and clear guidelines explained they settled down very quickly. My first activity was to create a slide of pictures of lockdown and add audio to the slide telling us about their life in lockdown. It was great to gather evidence and the student's voice. We will be back to cyber smart activities next week. One of the big improvements from lockdown is the number of blog posts across the cluster was 3 times the number of normal posts. I have been encouraging and supporting teachers to keep these numbers up. Some have made Fridays a posting day which is a start but not ideal. It would be more beneficial if it is embedded into the planning and part of the Learn, create and share of all learning in the classroom and across schools. It has been a busy week I am tired, with all the traveling and being back in classes. The biggest issue I have had is a sore back from leaning over low desks and tables supporting students with their work. I am going to stop this by using the wheely chair or carry a chair around the class with me and sit beside the students. I have also been organising a principal meeting round unpacking the WFRC data and the sense-making day next Tuesday. It is all organized and communication and agenda have gone out. We still need to work on communication within and across our Norhtlnad team and with WFRC. It is frustrating when you have been delegated a job and someone else is forever checking and changing things. Especially when they have delegated it to you in the first place. It has been beneficial to discuss with the teachers a plan of action for the rest of the activities for the term, especially with areas or concerns that arose out of lockdown that need to be revisited or covered. It has also been essential that they have shared their key areas or themes they are covering this term so I can link the cyber smart activities to these. Currently today in New Zealand we have one case of COVID 19, 22 deaths, and zero cases for a week. I do not want to jinx it but I think we may have got this or as a famous Kiwi once said "Well George, we have knocked the Bastard off" Sir Edmond Hillary.