Back to School (Part 4): The Interviews

Hello, friends! 

The past few weeks, you've heard from me about how school has been going. Now, you get to hear from the kids! Below are 3 quick interviews with each kid on how the past 2 weeks of having Ezra at virtual kindergarten has been going. 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam

Back to School (Part 3): The Lessons Have Begun!

Hello, friends! 

Well, the day finally came! Tuesday was Ezra's first day of school! We moved his desk downstairs, set up his school issued iPad, and he was ready to go! 

Friends, Ezra has been a champ. As much as a kindergartener can sit still, he's been able to focus. He's doing his assignments and enjoying the learning. Of course, it's been not just learning for him, but learning for Megan and me too. Here are a few lessons we've picked up after the first few days: 

- We did the right thing by putting Ezra in kindergarten now. Since Ezra was born in July, we had the option of enrolling him in kindergarten this year or waiting until next year. Especially after COVID hit, there was a real temptation to wait until next year but we decided to go for it this year. We're really glad that we did because at this point, he is crushing the academic material. Of course, it's just the first few days and everyone thinks that their child is a genius, but we're sure that if we waited a year, he'd be bored out of his mind. 

- Kindergarten teachers are superheros. Ezra's teacher, Miss Long, has the patience of a Zen master. All throughout the day, we're hearing kids interrupting the lessons and asking questions. Miss Long has been doing a great job of being patient with the kids and keeping them on task. Megan and I both agree that it's a job we probably wouldn't be able to do well. 

- Remote learning is full-time work for parents too. Tuesday and Wednesday, Megan was on Ezra duty. Today was my day. I was still able to get some stuff done but it certainly wasn't as much as if I was just working today. I moved all my meetings off today and I'm glad that I did. Ezra's schedule goes roughly 60 minutes on then 20 minutes off with a homework assignment before each break. During the 60 minutes on, Ezra does a great job. During the 20 minutes off, he still does great, but he needs a little help with his homework and getting a snack. Keeping up with him isnt' hard, it's just time consuming. 

Right now, with a few days under our belt, we're trying to figure out what the best path forward is for the rest of this first quarter. We have another family we know who is in a similar boat and so we may try to coordinate something together. What we do know is that Ezra appears to be doing well and everyone is learning a lot. 

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Back to School (Part 2): Another Change in Plans

Hello, friends! 

Well, things certainly have changed a bit, haven't they?! 

Last week, I wrote about how we didn't know that Ezra's school start date had been moved up a week and how we were scrambling to get him ready for school. Well, apparently, the law of the land right now is, "hold all things loosely." 

On Thursday, we went to Ezra's Back to School night. He picked up his mask, met his teacher, as well as the school nurse, counselor, and administrator. Omaha Public Schools was on a "3/2" schedule, meaning Ezra was going to be in class Thursdays and Fridays, as well as every other Wednesday. 

Friday, we got the news. Due to a spike in cases in Omaha, OPS decided to move the start of school back a week and be completely virtual for the first quarter. It was a big disappointment for us but we trust the OPS administration and agree with their assessment. 

So, we have one more week to prepare for life witha  kindergartener at home. We got a rough look at his schedule today from his teacher and it looks like he'll be in front of the school-issued tablet for a good chunk of the day. We aren't excited about it but we know there are no perfect answers. 

Please be praying for us. Pray that Ezra will still have a positive kindergarten experience. Pray that we'll be able to figure out all the logistics that come from him being at home while in class. Pray that Omaha will be able to get a handle on this pandemic so he can go to school in person during the second quarter. Pray for peace for Meg and me as we try to navigate all this. 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam

Back to School (Part 1): An invitation

Hello, friends! 

Yesterday, Megan and I got automated calls from the principal of the elementary school Ezra will be attending this year (Go Rose Hill Rams!) with an invitation to their Back to School Night and instructions on how to do iPad pickup next week before school starts. 

As we were listening to the message, a question popped up for us: Is school starting next week instead of the week after? The answer, YES! 

It appears as though in between the beginning of the summer when we checked the calendar and the point when we realized that we weren't on the Omaha Public Schools (OPS) email list, OPS decided to change the schedule and move everything up a week during the first semester and extend winter break a week, seemingly to limit potential COVID exposure during normal flu season. 

Meg took Ezra to do some back to school shopping after dinner while Thaliea and I made chocolate chip waffles with Jonah hanging out in his jumperoo. Apparently, Ezra was pretty stoked about shopping and picked up a sweet backpack-water bottle-lunch box combo (Spiderman in the house!). 

Next week I'll give you the run down of Ezra's first day of school: how it went, who cried, etc., but first, I wanted to invite you to a back to school event that InterVarsity is hosting with a number of other minstry groups from around the country. 

EVERY CAMPUS BACK TO SCHOOL is going to be pretty great. Christian artists from multiple genres will be performing. We'll have words from professional athletes. There's even a WashU professor who will be making an appearance (Go Bears!). Once we're done with Ezra's Back to School Night, you'd better believe that we'll be tuning in for the show. 

We hope you'll be able to join us tonight @ 8pm Central. Whether you're a college student yourself, a parent of college students, or someone who just believes that college is a place where God can and has done some amazing things, my hope is that tonight is an encouragement. 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam