I feel sorry for all the teachers out there who are trying to teach in these unusual times. Whether they are trying to teach online, in person, or in a hybrid model, this must be a very stressful start to the school year.

My granddaughter is still with me (as are her parents) and she is now in first grade. She finished last year online as a kindergartner, and her school has decided to do online learning for this month and keep re-assessing the risks involved in restarting in-person instruction.

I can tell that her teachers have worked hard to get ready for this school year. The first few days were devoted to making students familiar with the procedures they need to do online learning. The students are muted during the lessons on Zoom and must know how to unmute themselves after the teacher calls on them. They also practice hand signals so that teachers know if they need to fill their water bottle, use the loo, or want to answer a question. They also know how to sign “me too” or “I agree” when a classmate gives an answer.

The first-grade teachers work with the students in synchronous (live, online) learning for two hours in the morning and just over an hour in the afternoon with flex times in between for students to do their work online. The day begins at 9 a.m. and ends by 2:30. It's tiring for the kids (or anyone!) to sit on the computer all day and breaking up the lessons and special area instruction keeps it interesting.

When one considers how much time is spent in school lining up, walking to and from special area classes, lunch, etc., you can appreciate the time saved in an online model. There's no downtime for transitions. Every child is at her workspace and expected to attend and focus.

And that mute button is helpful for keeping everyone on task. I can think of a few classes I've taught where it would have come in handy!

We are in uncharted territory in education right now, and the teachers are doing amazing work in every classroom, virtual or real. Our students are also heroes for adapting to this new way of learning.

Education is continuously changing but I don't think anyone expected it to morph into what we are now seeing. But educators are nothing if not resilient lifelong learners, and their mission is to help their students grow and learn, no matter what. I wish them and their students success in their unique endeavors this school year.