Summer was coming to an end and the new school year was beginning, but I still had no idea when I could return to my second grade teaching role in China. COVID-19 had been contained and stopped spreading in Shenzhen and therefore my students were able to go back to school as normal. The country borders were still closed and I had no choice but to join my students virtually every day. 

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Back in February, I was forced to travel home to Michigan to escape the growing pandemic in China. Stuck in my childhood bedroom, without my school laptop and any of my resources, and now working within the China time zone (7:45pm-4am), life threw some major challenges my way. 

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I was assigned a co-teacher who would act as my "surrogate," being my arms and legs physically in the classroom while I delivered all of our daily lessons on the SmartBoard through Teams. Unsure how things would work out, we were risk-takers and went on anyways! I was in charge of planning and delivering lessons, and my co-teacher would prepare materials and interact with the students. 

 

This has by far been the most difficult feat that I have faced as an educator. It was near impossible to create relationships with students through a computer screen. Individual and group conferencing was inconsistent due to internet issues. There were so many elements that were out of my control, and I oftentimes felt utterly helpless. 

 

Despite all of the challenges we faced, I put everything negative aside and tried to make the most of the situation for my students. I wanted them to succeed even though I was struggling. This went on for 51 school days. I could tell our students were growing tired of learning from their teacher on the TV screen. This pushed me to assure that my lessons were very engaging and hands-on.

 

During this time of virtual teaching, I became a better team lead, a stronger communicator and collaborator and learned so much about myself and our Grade 2 team. We collaborated flawlessly, as everyone came together as one large support system. Our team met virtually using Zoom each day to plan using our weekly and conceptual planners and shared resources using OneDrive. I'm finally back in my classroom and feel like a real teacher again!  

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