Distance Learning in Lower School–Early Childhood Dear Lower School–Early Childhood Families,
By now you have received several emails from Calhoun detailing our response to COVID-19, school closure and school-wide distance learning. I'd like to take this opportunity to share a few thoughts about managing this evolving situation with our youngest students.
As is the case with all stressful and difficult life events, it is important to remain calm and relaxed when discussing this topic with your child. We know that children react to our emotions, so keeping conversations matter-of-fact and refraining from expressing our own fears in front of young children is paramount. A balance of honest and reassuring language enables children to process information comfortably. This article from The Child Mind Institute provides helpful information on this topic.
As you know, Calhoun is making plans to execute distance learning across all grade levels in the event of an extended school closure. The LS-EC faculty and I have spent the past two weeks imagining, discussing and planning for what that means for our youngest learners. It goes without saying that we cannot replicate the early childhood classroom experience without being in school. So much of our work is focused on social-emotional development and cooperative learning, which is of course rooted in in-person interaction among students and between students and teachers. That said, there are learning opportunities for children everywhere, and our intention is to harness those, apply them to our curriculum, and provide consistency and connection for students and families.
Distance learning for LS-EC children will remain holistically focused on cognitive, physical and social-emotional development. Learning activities and experiences will emphasize interaction and creativity. These activities will require minimal technology or specialized materials. We understand that during a school closure students are likely to spend more time than usual with screens and devices. It is important to us that the learning opportunities we suggest do not add to that increased time and in fact provide meaningful activities away from screens. Should the closure be extended for a prolonged period of time we may consider adding small amounts of technology-based activities in the future.
Alison
The Calhoun School: www.calhoun.org
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