‘I can’t wait to video conference with you.’ Manatee schools prepare for online learning

Thereasa Devine, a third-grade teacher at Williams Elementary School, danced to the tune of “Baby Shark” on Friday morning, during the school’s drive-through parade.

“I miss you,” she said to a group of passing students. “I can’t wait to video conference with you next week.”

Florida schools are closed through at least April 15, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Devine was thrust into the unknown. Both of her children were stuck at home, and she had to balance the rigors of motherhood and teaching.

Elementary students need interaction to hold their attention, she said. After a series of long nights, Devine tailored her activities and lessons for online learning, which begins Monday.

“There have been many nights where I put my kids to bed and worked until 1 a.m. to get it all done,” she said.

A morale booster for teachers

Friday’s parade was a morale booster for Devine and her peers. Families and teachers celebrated each other, putting their worries on hold while sharing in a moment of happiness.

Children and parents navigated the school’s car loop, shouting at their favorite teachers through windows and sunroofs. The school employees, standing on a nearby sidewalk, held encouraging signs and traded “air hugs” with their students.

Meanwhile, about 20 other schools passed out laptops on Friday morning. Each school was responsible for speaking with parents and documenting their needs, whether it be computers or internet access.

More than 7,800 people requested a laptop, said Cynthia Saunders, superintendent for the School District of Manatee County.

Saunders was unsure how many students needed help with internet access, and she said an answer would likely be available as classes start.

“I do not have the exact number,” Saunders said. “Like I said, they’re tabulated by each school.”

On March 19, the superintendent ordered 400 WiFi hotspots and service from T-Mobile. The devices are scheduled to arrive between April 3 and April 10, after the start of classes, and Manatee was hoping to connect students with public hotspots in the interim.

Spectrum opened WiFi hotspots for public use earlier this month, listing each site at spectrum.com/wifi-hotspots.html.

The district was also outfitting 25 school buses with T-Mobile sim cards. The fleet of buses will start parking at community churches on Tuesday, creating mobile WiFi hotspots with a reach of 1,000 feet, Saunders said.

“For some, it will span into their home,” Saunders said. “We’re putting those in a densely populated area.”

She said the district would also equip several campuses with WiFi hotspots, allowing families to access the internet from a school parking lot.

Between the 400 devices, the school buses, the public hotspots and the handful of WiFi-equipped schools, Saunders felt the district had students covered.

“When you see all of our internet connections that we have listed, it’s saturated,” she said. “I really think the 400 individual hotspots is all we’re going to need for those isolated parts.”

‘Our teachers are working really hard’

Families drove through a car line at Haile Middle on Friday morning. Donning gloves, school administrators handed each parent a sanitized laptop and a support manual.

Five students needed a WiFi connection at Haile Middle, and approximately 100 students requested a laptop, Principal Kate Barlaug said.

“Our teachers are working really hard,” she said. “They’re excited for this, and we know parents are feeling very apprehensive, because we’re asking them to do what we do every day. They’re not necessarily trained for that.”

Teachers prepared welcome-back videos to upload on Schoology, the district’s online learning platform.

They also translated schoolwork for students who were learning English, and they planned one-on-one sessions for students who needed special education services, the principal said.

All students have the ability to watch live classes or recordings, and students have between Monday and Sunday to finish assignments, providing more flexibility than a normal school week, she continued.

The move to online learning was massive, and Barlaug said patience was vital in the coming days.

“The main thing is flexibility and realizing that it’s going to take some students longer to get online,” she said. “We’re asking the entire district to get on this learning platform.”