So learning… is that still supposed to happen?

The “COVID Slide”
If only it were a fun new piece of playground equipment or a trending Tiktok dance. Instead, it’s what experts are referring to when they tell us students are returning to school this fall with reading skills roughly 30% behind where they would be in a typical year, and math skills nearly a full year behind. So how do we help our kids catch up? Or how do we keep them challenged as teachers are working with those who were hardest hit? Check back here for advice from contributing experts.
#2020 Tips
Starting Virtual: A Teacher’s Perspective
Starting Virtual: A Teacher’s Perspective by Margaret Goldberg – teacher, literacy coach, education advocate Instructional time lost last spring weighed heavily on my conscience. I kept thinking, “This was students’ one chance at [kindergarten, first grade, second grade….] and they got cheated.” I had been leading a grant-funded project devoted to improving reading instruction in…
What does “Back to School” really mean in the era of Distance Learning?
School is BACK. This week, at the age of 42, I started the 1st grade for the second time in my life. It appears several other parents in my son’s class have too. Distance Learning 2.0 here we come.
Parents Speak: 2020 Survey Results
At the beginning of August, we launched an informal temperature check to understand if what we were feeling as educators and parents during this far-from-normal school experience was shared by others. Several hundred parents responded and the results were both compelling and validating: You are not alone.
The Good Stuff
Last Thursday was the Night of the Zoom calls. All the NYC public schools in our orbit—both the one we’re leaving behind and the two my kids are starting fresh in the Fall—scheduled all-school Zoom calls to talk about their plans from reopening.
Explore More Choices

So… learning. Is that still expected to happen?
How do I help? How do I even know if my kid needs help?

My kid is an emotional trainwreck.
Forget grammar — our goal is to avoid a lifetime of therapy.

Totally manageable. Also it’s Opposite Day.
We barely had our $%#! together before the pandemic.

All of the above.
Hit me with any advice you’ve got..