SPOKANE, Wash — Monday marked a return to the virtual classroom for over 30,000 students as Spokane Public Schools officially started the 2020 school year.
Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, district leaders have opted to begin the year with a distance learning model that involves students completing lessons at home. Other changes from SPS include meal kits with breakfasts and lunches for families.
At Regal Elementary in the Bemiss neighborhood, fourth grade teachers Holly McClanahan and Sue Pfeifer were quickly embracing their online class model.
"Does anyone have anything other than 47?" asked McClanahan, who was beside a whiteboard teaching math, into a webcam that was being streamed to students.
Using Microsoft Teams, students were able to ask and answer questions when called upon.
"Izzy, can you un-mute and explain how you got 47?" McClanahan asked a student.
White some technology hiccups were expected with the rollout of the distance learning model, the fourth grade teachers said Monday went off mostly without a hitch.
Mostly.
"You're muted!" chimed in several students from home via the Teams program during a brief moment when McClanahan and Pfeifer accidentally silenced the webcam's audio.
"OK, got it. Thanks guys!" chuckled McClanahan in response.
"Here we are, we're doing it, and it's actually kind of cool," the teacher told KREM after the lesson. "It feels good to have a little bit of a first day under our belt."
The teachers said that a majority of their students didn't have any problems logging in for the school day. Additionally, the school worked with families prior to the first day to work through any potential technology problems.
"A lot of kids showed up," said McClanahan. "They had fun, they were excited to see their friends. We were excited to see them."
"Definitely, this is a huge learning curve for all of us," added Pfeifer. "So having patience, and helping kids learn patience is going to be paramount."
The two teachers worked as a team during the lesson. As McClanahan completed math problems in front of the whiteboard and webcam, Pfeifer monitored the Microsoft Teams program to make sure students were logged in and participating.
"It wasn't a traditional summer," chuckled Pfeifer regarding the duo's prep work before the first day.
In a statement, SPS called the first day "successful."
"We appreciate all the planning and preparation of staff and collaboration with family and community members. Over 30,000 students started this year in real-time distance learning. Anticipated potential issues were quickly identified and resolved. The beginning of the day went as planned with students using Microsoft Teams and with staff ready and excited to start the school year," read a district statement sent to news outlets.
So far, the district hasn't provided a firm timeline on when or how students could physically return to the classroom. A district spokesperson said that SPS plans to work with the Spokane Regional Health District to re-evaluate the district's learning plans as coronavirus case numbers change.