Items

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  2021-02-27

  #JOTPYLesson from Daniel Lopez

  Throughout the pandemic, I've learned the importance of family. My personal challenges during this very difficult period could not have been overcome without the unconditional love and support from my family. Thank you and I love all of you! Linda Mercado-Paulson Isabel Peralta Jay Jay Peralta Jacob Mercado Jennifer Conroy Jessica Linda Mercado Kristina Danielle @covid19archive1 #JOTPYLesson
• 2021-02-26

  Quarantine and Dementia

  One of the most challenging aspects of having to quarantine due to Covid is explaining to a parent who has dementia why they cannot be taken places and why they have to wear a mask whenever out in public. My mom has vestibular dementia which comes and goes. On a good day, my mom doesn't show any signs of dementia but on a bad day, dementia can be a big challenge - even when everything in the world was normal. On days that my mom wants to go to the grocery store or Target and she is having an episode of dementia explaining to her why she has to wear a mask is like explaining to a toddler why they cannot have candy for dinner. Sometimes the battles are tiring. Just recently she has had both of her vaccines for Covid and on her "good and bad days" she doesn't think she needs a mask since she has had her vaccines. Somedays quarantining is more than an inconvenience - it makes life even more challenging!
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  2021-01-30

  Mood Boards!

  Being a teacher in the K-12 arena I am always having to do lesson plans, grades, parent contacts, and more. Then here comes COVID-19 adding an extra layer which also adds its extra challenge to the problem. This includes thinking more about the student Social Emotional Learning (SEL) which mean doing more check-ins on how they are doing emotionally. So, I included one example I have done with my students which was dealing with emojis and which one they felt like that day and why. I received various answers and reasons which helped me see how my students felt physically and emotionally. I enjoyed this activity and so did my students. They love hearing which one I am and why as well.
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  2020-06-29

  Canada Day 2020 — Let’s get active together!

  Government of Canada encourages the public to get active this Canada day. With the help of Canadian athletes to take up the fitness challenge and use the hashtag #ActiveTogether to share their experience.
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  2021-01-20

  Road to Challenger

  During the last few months, I kept playing this game, trying to rank myself up to challenger.
• 2021-01-14

  Virtual Learning

  Well, my school decided to teach virtually. I was quite saddened by this news. I was hoping we would be over with this virus, but apparently not. My routine is basically wake up in the morning, take care of my dog, eat breakfast, and go to school on my computer. I enjoy sleeping in a little more and not having to get ready for school, but there are lots of challenges along with virtual learning. I had a very difficult time learning online and it was difficult to do projects at home. I did not have all the supplies so I could not do some projects. Some classes were strenuous and I was exhausted at the end of the day. Also, some other benefits of online learning is not wearing a uniform and not waking up early for school. Overall, I enjoyed some things about virtual learning, but I also struggled with some parts too. I would rather want to go to school so I can make new friends, learn much more, and get to know my teachers.
• 2021-01-14

  Virtual Learning During Covid

  Virtual learning was definitely an experience that came with a lot of challenges, but also a lot of added benefits. Some challenges were not being able to ask questions in person, because some questions are too detailed to get a good answer to without seeing what the other person is talking about. I also seemed to zone out more online than I would in class because we were on zoom so long. I definitely feel I was on my computer more in the last year-ish than my entire life. Some benefits were my sleep schedule was actually way better when we were online than it has been in a while or when we were in person. My stress also seemed to go down incredibly when online because the teachers seemed to be way more understanding on zoom, and wanted to help you. Overall I like being back in school, but being online wasn't as bad for me as it must have been for others.
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  2020-10-05

  Senior Year in NYC: The Monumental Moments - Cheers, We’ve Made It This Far!

  Our senior toast revolved around celebrating the fact that we made it to October without giving up, not that seniors in college need too many reasons to toast. Getting through each day has understandably been a challenge but we are one step closer to returning to normal life. **Fordham University, SOCI2200
• 2020-12-17

  Covid 19 Challenges

  This journal entry was written as a part of the American Studies class at California High School in San Ramon, California. A big challenge I’ve faced during covid has been getting used to online school. Knowing when I have which classes, and dealing with internet issues has been the biggest problems. Another challenge my family has faced has been staying safe while everybody works. My Dad, Brother and I all work with the general public so it’s been challenging staying safe. My mom has had it easier because she can do her job while only interacting with 1 or 2 people. It’s been the hardest on my dad because he interacts with the most people and at times can’t maintain 6 feet apart.
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  2020-08-06

  Jewish Melbourne: Stand Up zoom session with Mt Scopus students

  "Yesterday, students at Mount Scopus Memorial College had the first of two opportunities to meet with (over zoom, of course) Hosna Hamouda and hear her story. Hosna was born in Sudan, her family fled when she was just one and arrived in Australia at the age of 5 after being in transit in Egypt. Hosna spoke to students about the challenges of beginning school without any knowledge of English and her experiences growing up in Melbourne coming from a Sudanese background. In the next session, kids learn more about the Sudanese community in Melbourne and will brainstorm ways to make a contribution! #StandUpStandOut"
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  2020-09-17

  Jewish Melbourne: Stand Up zooming with King David School students

  "Yesterday we zoomed with Year 5 students at King David, exploring the connections between social justice challenges and Rosh Hashana. 🙏 What an inspiring way to bring in 5781! Here's hoping we can run this program again next year, but in real life this time! Shana Tova!"
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  2020-11-04

  The Reality Of Teaching During COVID

  No teacher was prepared for a transition to distance learning during a global pandemic. Nevertheless, teachers all over the world had to alter courses at the end of last school year, and the beginning of this school year. With very little time, adjustments were made to introduce distance learning. This allowed for teachers to keep teaching and students to keep learning. Although a plan for distance learning was created, no one knew what they were walking into. This has left teachers, parents, and students to pick up the pieces and learn as they go. In frustration many blame teachers for any disorganization or problems that have occurred throughout distance learning, but in all realness, they too are left to take this new style of learning day by day.
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  2020-09-23

  The Challenges of Caring for Children and Working at Home

  I have been working from home and caring for both of my kids with my spouse since March. It is challenging and chaotic, but also it brings a lot of joys in watching kids develop. Teaching at the university level has also brought its challenges and joys, but I hope that by making my own struggles visible, it makes me more relatable to students.
• 
  2020-06-13

  Do face masks make it more difficult to communicate?

  As someone who is Hard of Hearing, I worry about returning to work in the fall. I never realized how much I rely on lip and expression reading before now. With masks and zoom meetings I struggle to understand conversations that normally would be simple. I have hearing aids but unfortunately they do not help much when context clues are deprived. Soft spoken, mumblers, low voices are all drowned out into the background. I search peoples eyes for clues, are they laughing? Are they concerned? In my Deaf and HoH support group the threads are now saturated with frustrated people just venting. Something as simple as a trip to the grocery store now requires a pad and pencil while pointing to the ears repeating, "I cant hear you. Let me write it down. I am Hard of Hearing/Deaf. Sorry. Sorry." While people behind you get irritated. I have thought about getting a neon shirt to wear at the store with the words, "I am Hard of Hearing, I can't hear you!" In zoom meetings I can see peoples faces. It provides context I miss so much. But I have low-frequency hearing loss so the voices of men are blurry at best. Arizona State University has a fantastic disability resource center and they have started providing me with a captioner who attends classes with me and transcribes for me live. I don't always need her but it has been nice not having to message classmates through a class to ask what was missed. This is a new world for many deaf/Deaf/HoH who are my age. We have always had ways to work around our disability. Now masks and technology are depriving us of coping skills we relied on.
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  2020-04-17

  Humans of Covid-19 AU: Molly

  “Online schooling is definitely not ideal. I’d rather be at school with my friends. But considering it’s the only option, it’s going ok so far. The biggest challenge for me is trying to keep on top of the work, because there’s so much being thrown at us and no teacher there to guide us. I miss school a lot, especially my friends, sport and socialising with people. I find that social media is not the same as actually seeing your friends. I prefer being one-on-one with someone so we can actually talk properly. I’m a lot calmer than I was at the end of last term. Everything around me is organised and clean, so I feel a lot less stressed and chaotic. But now I'm ready for my life to go back to normal.” Instagram post on Molly, a high school student, and her experience during the pandemic, which was created by a psychology student living in Melbourne who was interested to hear about how COVID-19 was impacting on different peoples’ lives.
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  2020-06-17

  Covid-19 in Bhutan

  This is story about Bhutan being impacted by Covid-19.
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  2020-05-19

  LGBT Africans Share Challenges of Life During Pandemic

  This press release from the Human Rights Watch discusses a new podcast called AfroQueer. It discusses a variety of topics and how issues faced by LGBT Africans have been compounded by Covid-19. As a white gay man living in the United States, it is disturbing and saddening to learn of the plight of LGBTQ people in other countries and how these problems can be exacerbated by race. The theme that is emerging in marginalized communities is that the world won't stop its oppression of their identity and personhood, even during a global pandemic.
• 2020-05-13

  My Story

  A personal account of the pandemic.
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  2020-04-20

  The Great Indoors

  Poem attempting to capture the mood of stay at home orders and social distancing.
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  2020-04-08

  Indigenous Peoples of the Philippines: Particular Challenges In Facing COVID-19

  “Indigenous Peoples are no strangers to disease and disaster. Through generations, Indigenous Peoples have established responses and coping mechanisms – grounded in traditional knowledge, customs and practices – to different circumstances affecting their communities. These are all founded on one fundamental principle: to ensure that the community survives. A common response across Indigenous communities is that of closing-off the community to all – this means no one can enter the community until deemed safe. Such community closures are done for different reasons. In the Cordillera, Philippines such practice is regularly observed during the agricultural cycle. Before or after the fields are ready for planting and harvesting, the community declares ubaya/tengaw which basically means everyone stays at home, no hard labor is to be done by anyone. This is a time for the community and the earth to rest and typically lasts a day or two.” #IndigenousStories
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  2020-04-29

  Notes During Class 9 (A discussion Anne Frank)

  This image is apart of a series of screenshots taken during lessons via Microsoft Teams.Teaching my third graders from afar has become a challenge and a blessing at the same time. None of us knew of Mr. Microsoft Teams until we were forced to meet him. The way he impacts our lives is sometimes frustrating and other times satisfying. Unlike classroom noise, the chat that goes on during lessons are now mixed in with the lesson and available for all to participate- including the teacher! It's silent and said with caution and other times daring. (I've blurred the faces and redacted the names to protect the students' privacy.)
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  2020-04-29

  Notes During Class 8 (talking about Anne Frank)

  This image is apart of a series of screenshots taken during lessons via Microsoft Teams.Teaching my third graders from afar has become a challenge and a blessing at the same time. None of us knew of Mr. Microsoft Teams until we were forced to meet him. The way he impacts our lives is sometimes frustrating and other times satisfying. Unlike classroom noise, the chat that goes on during lessons are now mixed in with the lesson and available for all to participate- including the teacher! It's silent and said with caution and other times daring. (I've blurred the faces and redacted the names to protect the students' privacy.)
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  2020-04-29

  Submitting Work

  This image is apart of a series of screenshots taken during lessons via Microsoft Teams.Teaching my third graders from afar has become a challenge and a blessing at the same time. None of us knew of Mr. Microsoft Teams until we were forced to meet him. The way he impacts our lives is sometimes frustrating and other times satisfying. (I've redacted the name to protect the student's privacy.)
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  2020-04-29

  Notes During Class 2

  This image is apart of a series of screenshots taken during lessons via Microsoft Teams.Teaching my third graders from afar has become a challenge and a blessing at the same time. None of us knew of Mr. Microsoft Teams until we were forced to meet him. The way he impacts our lives is sometimes frustrating and other times satisfying. Unlike classroom noise, the chat that goes on during lessons are now mixed in with the lesson and available for all to participate- including the teacher! It's silent and said with caution and other times daring. (I've blurred the faces and redacted the names to protect the students' privacy.)
• 2020-04-28

  Teaching Without a License

  With schools being closed down I have had to take up the job of teaching my younger brother. It all started with praying for a miracle that he would complete his school work. The miracle did not come quick enough for my mom and I had to step in and be the mediator. I felt like I was a counselor trying to persuade the both of them to talk out their feelings. Well, he is in his preadolescent years, so that ended in a failure. Finally, I presented my family with the miracle my mom had been asking for. The miracle was in a form of being rewarded with not taking his PlayStation away. Worried he would fail his P.E. class, my parents bought a trampoline. He used it for a few days... Next, was math. After some very low grades on math quizzes it was time to put my teaching classes into action. First, I had to convince him to start organizing his problems. That took a week and another low math score to convince him. Next, I had to persuade him to start writing his formulas with every problem. How was he going to score higher without knowing his formulas? He seems to have learned more, but this is much more difficult than expected. I am not looking forward to the final month of the school year. #REL101
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  2020-03-17

  The high demand for lawyers amid the coronavirus pandemic

  How coronavirus affects lawyers
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  2020-03-20

  Suffolk theatre department finds solutions to remote learning challenges

  The Suffolk Journal, Suffolk University's student run newspaper, reports on Suffolk's academic decisions during the pandemic.
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  2020-03-23

  Quarantine Push Up Challenge

  Early into stay at home, Quarantine Challenges began circulating social media, with the push up challenge being especially popular. Users were encouraged to "do 10 and tag 10," meaning post yourself doing 10 push ups and tag 10 more people to continue the challenge.
• 2020-03-28

  Challenge of the Mundane

  Description of walking trails being more crowded during the COVID-19 pandemic.