Making distance learning fun

Teachers and students are working diligently on their distance learning lessons each day, and at Sacred Heart School they are finding ways to infuse some fun into their days as well.

Prior to the school closures, students had the option to forego their uniforms on Mondays provided they wore spirit wear in the form of a Cardinals t-shirt or hoodie. After distance learning was initiated, teachers wanted to help keep that school spirit strong, so earlier in May, students were encouraged to dress in their spirit wear for their online classes or while working on their homework packets. Parents were asked to send in photos, which were then featured on Facebook. The teachers and principal joined in the fun and submitted their pictures as well. Middle school teacher Jenifer Lyons-Brotherton even added a “We miss you” message on the whiteboard that she has hanging in her dining room, her normal location for conducting live classes on Google Classroom.

Fun days in April included a crazy hat day and a day to show support for your favorite team or sport. Teacher Wendy Hiltunen (3 ^rd and 4 ^th grades) went all out for crazy hat day and recorded a video of herself in Google Classroom trying on no fewer than 8 different hats!

Additional fun activities included a nature scavenger hunt, also posted on Facebook, and a middle school movie night hosted by teachers Jenifer Lyons-Brotherton and Andrea Lahnanen through their Google Classroom links. Mrs. Lahnanen had promised to “bring the popcorn” for movie night and made doorstep deliveries several days before. Each middle school student received a bag of microwave popcorn, a juice box, and a theater box of M&Ms.

Afterward, Mrs. Lyons-Brotherton reported, “We had a lot of fun! We were a little hampered by the weather (some students had internet issues) but the students loved their snacks and enjoyed the movie. I think this would be something our students would enjoy doing again.”  And Mrs. Lahnanen commented, “We watched The Swiss Family Robinson courtesy of Mr. and Mrs. Brotherton's computer expertise. I enjoyed the movie and being able to spend some down time with my students. It was like a pajama party.”

The final dress-up day was this past week, when teachers and students were encouraged to show up to online classes in their favorite beach wear or summer outfits. Submitted photos were posted on the school Facebook page.