Operation Hot Chocolate (and seeing my students for the first time)

Yesterday I served almost 100 cups of hot chocolate. After each class finished their assessment, they got to take a cup outside to enjoy it. And as I sat outside with them, I realized that I haven’t seen most of their faces. It’s surprising to me how unrecognizable many of them are without their masks, and how the part of their face that I’ve never seen looks NOTHING like what I was (subconsciously) imagining.

It’s crazy to think that, four months into the school year, I don’t know what most of my students even look like. It’s even crazier to think that I’ll never really see their faces for the entire school year.

Because I don’t think I will ever see their faces. Not in front of me while I teach. Before omicron I thought maybe, by the spring, the mask mandate at school would be lifted. It felt like a long shot, but still possible. Now I don’t think there is any possibility of masks not being worn at school. An entire school year of masked teaching. After an entire school year of online teaching. When I say it like that, I get really depressed.

But at least we’re in person. I’m actually wondering if that will continue to be the case with this new variant. I had never considered that a possibility this school year, but after reading a bunch of articles this morning, I think it might be. At the very least, I think it’s very possible that a single school could get shut down for a couple of weeks if too many staff are out after testing positive, or if a bunch of kids are getting it from each other at school (that staff situation feels way more plausible).

But maybe those masks, that obscure my students faces, will allow us to keep the status quo. I think we’ll know by the end of January how this will affect in person learning. I’m sure a TON of kids will be out in January because of testing positive or living with someone who has tested positive. So much travel is happening over this break. So many indoor, maskless meet ups.

And I’m not judging any of that, it’s just a fact. My sister is flying from London, where omicron is spreading like crazy. I plan to spend lots of time with her the first week she’s in town, when she can’t know yet if she got Covid before she left (but not early enough to test positive before flying – she does need a negative test to board the plane) or on the super long flight full of other people from London. I’m not waiting until half her trip is over to see her and I’m not wearing a mask when I’m around her either.

Tonight my daughter’s three best friends are sleeping over. On Monday I’m taking my kids to Dave and Buster’s. These are the things they’ve been waiting so long to do, and since they are officially (as) “fully protected” (as they are every going to be) now is the time to indulge them. I think after these initial splurges we will go back to be pretty cautious; I do not plan on visiting Dave and Busters again during the break, or having any kids spend the night after their holiday travels. We won’t be eating indoors or seeing movies at the theater, which is a bummer because Spiderman looks really good. We will be visiting with my parents and my sister inside without masks. We will be going out with friends in some public indoor situations. These are new experiences for us, and while we won’t get to enjoy them like we might have (there will be more anxiety and second guessing to be sure), we aren’t going to shut down again. At least not yet.

Today my kids are at school and I’m home. I have some tests to grade (I got through the big assessments already! Woot!) and a lot of cleaning to do. I’m thankful to have the day to get shit done, before two weeks of holiday craziness. It’s nice to feel like I can get slightly ahead before it gets totally nuts.

How are you feeling on the eve of this holiday season?