A student winces as her alarm goes off at 8:25, alerting her to school starting in five minutes. So, she rubs her eyes and grabs her chromebook, clicking the Google Meet link for her first period class. She makes sure that her camera and microphone are off, and joins the meeting. Her teacher takes attendance, and then she’s free to log off and work on her assignment. Then, she does it all again a half hour later.
On Sunday night, MCHS students and parents were notified that Monday would be declared an emergency learning day due to the blizzard that was to sweep through McHenry.
Monday was the second e-learning day to occur this school year, with the previous one being on Jan 22.
There was one common theme for many – sleeping in and doing school from bed.
“I actually wasn’t home, I was in the Dells,” says Izzy Schober, senior at MCHS. “The night before, I put my computer next to the bed. So, when my alarm went off, I just rolled over and joined my first period class.”
“I pretty much just listened to what my teacher had to say for a few minutes,” says Schober, “got dismissed, and watched TikToks in my bed, and I did that for pretty much every class.”
While e-learning is still considered a day of instruction, it often serves as a break for students and staff; this is especially appreciated during the time that is often deemed a “pre-spring break slump.”
Even though students seem to appreciate the extra break-time a lot, teachers make the most of it too.
“Well for starters, I slept in, worked out, and had my coffee,” says Margaret Carhart, English teacher at MCHS. “I picked out my roll call question and made sure my Google Meets links were working, and then we did our class.”
“It was a very easy day,” says Carhart. “After classes, I stayed for office hours and answered a few questions. Then, I got to read my book, which was really good.”
Many students used the extra time off to relax and take a break.
“I finished all my work really quickly,” says Jack Barrett, junior at MCHS. “After that, I just went to the gym and got Chipotle, so it was pretty nice.”
During COVID, e-learning seemed like a chore since students had to log on every day. But, now that these days are few and far between, they can serve as a nice break, even if there’s a snowstorm outside.
The student logs off of her last meeting around 12:40, and wonders what she’ll do with the rest of her day. She finishes up her work, cooks a nice lunch, and takes a nap. All of this helps her wake up refreshed and ready for School on Tuesday — even if e-learning gave her COVID flashbacks.