Time and Place...What Is Happening?
Thursday, March 12, 2020...Governor DeWine orders K-12 schools to shut down and prohibits gatherings of more than 100 people. Soon after, restaurants and bars, beauty salons, and tattoo shops are ordered to close. By March 22nd, Governor DeWine and Dr. Amy Acton announce a stay-at-home order with allowances for medical supplies, groceries, exercise, or to go to work for essential businesses.
On March 12, Dr. Terri Holden, Superintendent of Yellow Springs Schools, announced that Friday, March 13 will be the last day for students to attend classes in the buildings and to begin planning for virtual modes of teaching and maintaining connections with students. As students pack a few of their belongings, teachers collaborate to to plan and organize lessons and materials, assign laptops to every student, and maintain a sense of calm as daily routines take a sharp turn.
With orders to stay at home and an objective to flatten the curve (decrease the rate of COVID-19 spread), essential workers became the main topic of many news outlets. Whereas teachers could continue to work from home, other professions such as health care workers, grocers, package delivery men and women, and postal workers, found themselves in a position where they are risking their own lives to help others and their communities. By April, it was clear that society heavily relies on essential workers, who often receive little to no gratitude and had been taken for granted prior to this crisis.
What is Our Call to Action?
In this inquiry lesson, students explored the question, "How can we celebrate our everyday heroes?" 6th grade students honored everyday heroes in their communities by writing an open letter and creating original art to show their gratitude.
How Do We Publish Our Best Work?
Mills Lawn Elementary students participate in draft and revision cycles with their peers to think about and make improvements to their work. In small group virtual meetings, students follow a critique protocol that allows each student to present while the rest of the group proves kind, helpful, and specific feedback. Presenters listen to warm and cool feedback and consider these critiques to finalize their work.
Here are their final products...
April 21, 2020
Dear Nurses,
Thank you. Thank you for going and helping sick people. Thank you for sacrificing your time and your safety to save people. You spend your day of work risking your health. You spent four years of college to be a nurse. You and doctors help save peoples lives. Thank you for all you do.
From,
Audrey
April 21, 2020
Dear Teachers,
Thank you for putting so much work and effort into helping students. You are patient and selfless because you put aside your work and problems in order to help kids learn in a new way.
You motivate kids to do their best on their assignments. If students are having a problem, teachers try their hardest to help us and make sure we understand our lessons. They have always put their students first, but it is especially harder to do that now with the coronavirus having such a big impact on our lifestyles.
Sincerely,
Elaina
April 20, 2020
Dear Truck Drivers,
You are very important because you put yourselves at risk of getting the coronavirus when transporting goods. You have to drive all around the state and come into contact with multiple customers throughout your shift. The things you deliver around the U.S. are very important for all the citizens, One, you deliver food to stores that need supplies. Two, you deliver medical supplies like medicine to pharmacies and hospitals. Three, you deliver all types of consumer goods which can range from toilet paper to toilets. Pretty much anything seen in a home, a truck driver would have delivered it to the store.
You are a hero to me because you are so important to our economy. You take a risk and sacrifice your safety to deliver food and other goods to stores and deliver medical supplies like medicine or hospital equipment to hospitals and pharmacies.Thank you for your extraordinary actions.
From,
Wyatt
April 21, 2020
Dear Nurses around the world,
During this pandemic many people have been laid off of work or are staying inside because of the highly contagious coronavirus. You have been tending to these people that may or may not have the coronavirus. You are brave and dedicated to your work, Nurses have been working with the ill, the people that could possibly be infected.
The coronavirus is highly contagious and deadly, yet the nurses of the world have been working. People think that ordinary people can’t be heros but that isn’t true. Ordinary people that decide to take action are heroes. “A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer.” Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Sincerely,
Leilani
April 21, 2020
Dear Doctors,
Thank you for working to help people who are sick and helping to research the coronavirus. Thank you for helping decide if it is safe to open our schools again. Thank you very much for keeping us safe.
You are everyday heroes because you are selfless, putting your health at risk to help others. You are caring, and kind. You put yourself in harm's way to help prevent people getting the coronavirus. These are only some of the reasons that you are everyday heroes.
Sincerely,
Tristan
April 21, 2020
Dear Ms. Amin,
Sadly, throughout this pandemic we can’t go to school and see the teachers, principles, and our friends. My teachers are my heroes because they are determined to keep us involved in the class. I am glad that we have our Google class meetings so that we can see everyone in the class. These meetings help me because I can ask questions and not have to email you my questions. Thank you for having online meetings so that we can ask you questions face to face.
On Tuesday, when Mr. Housh joined us for our optional class meeting, I had fun as we basically had our own band concert, and played our instruments together. He told us about songs , he sang, and played his guitar. That was fun.Then he had to leave for another meeting. The rest of us stayed on the video call and just talked with each other and Ms Amin.
Lillian
4/21/2020
Dear Teachers,
During this Covid-19 outbreak teachers must be working even harder than they already do regularly, and they already do a lot! Not all heroes wear capes or have superpowers. It’s the extraordinary things that they do that makes them a hero.
There are many amazing traits that a teacher has but I choose to spotlight helpfulness. Teachers have been making the work less hard and supporting their students! Teachers help students stay connected to each other by having meetings. Without teachers, students would have no idea what is going on in school! Thank you for helping us when we need you! Thank you for being heroes.
Sincerely,
Tavey
4/24/2020
Dear epidemiologists and virologists,
I understand you are under a lot of pressure because very little is known about this extremely contagious novel virus and the demand for a vaccine or cure is high. Working under pressure is hard and you are all heroes for studying the virus.
Best regards,
Astryd
Dear Nurses,
When most people think of a hero, they think of Superman or more realistically, someone who fought in war to protect their country. Those people are heroes, but right now, in our situation with the Coronavirus, nurses and doctors and anyone putting themselves out there for others in this rough time are true heroes today.
A great example of a hero today is a nurse. Nurses are around many sick patients and their hours can go on much longer than expected. This can put nurses at very risky stakes of getting sick just as well as the risks doctors and other hospital employees take. Nurses are taking care of sick patients everyday and with the risk of getting sick I'm sure some nurses have decided to stay home to protect them and their families from the virus. Some nurses though will stay at work, which is very brave of them because not only are they working in a hospital, where they work with sick patients, but with the coronavirus there's more and worse sick patients which is an even higher risk with much more precautions to take into mind.
Some nurses will stay at work to support their families, especially nurses with kids. Though that also puts the risk of getting their children sick. At worst, being a nurse as a single parent is the bravest part of being a nurse. Hiring a babysitter just means more germs being moved around. Finding a babysitter t right now would be difficult when they've got their own families to support also. This all leads to a huge, brave and risky decision to make a choice to leave your child alone for a very numerous sum of hours, especially if they are very young. Though not all nurses have a situation that comes to a problem as big as this, they still have to be very brave to decide to continue to work no matter who they put at risk of sickness.
Nurses are very brave people today just like many other people, because right now we all are and will need to make some brave decisions no matter if we work in a hospital or not.
Sincerely,
Sasi
April 23,2020
Dear Mom,
I would like to honor you because you are a nurse and you are selfless. You risk your life for the good of people. During this time people are living in quarantine and you are trying to help people from getting the virus. I know that when you go to work you have to check your temperature to make sure you aren't sick. That's why you're selfless. I am thankful for you, Mom, and other nurses helping us all during this time.
You are also a hero because while you risk your life, you also looks after me and my sister. I know that it's hard for you to work and leave me and my sister at home but I love to watch my sister so that you can help other people. Thank you Mom and all the nurses that are helping us through this crisis.
Love,
Treyon
April 24th, 2020
Dear Mom,
I’d like to thank you, sincerely. I’ve learned more about where the masks you make are going, and it’s to the places that need them most, like hospitals, families, and all around to whoever else is in need. Knowing that your self-sacrifice of time and resources is going to our most essential forces has made me proud of the time you put in. I want to thank you for your unbeatable efforts, all day every day, to ensure the safety of others. That’s what a hero is, and that’s what a hero does.
Another reason that I look at you as a hero is I imagine where all the masks you make are going, and how they bring joy and the feeling of security to people all around us. And seeing you put effort in every day to make more, then finish work, and dinner, and spend time with us is amazing, all being in these confusing times. I am truly amazed and proud of the work you’ve done.
Sincerely,
Simon
April 22, 2020
Dear Mom,
I want to say thank you for all of the hard work you have been doing with this with a serious and contagious virus spreading in many communities, and you are still going at it. And even though it’s dangerous, and you can possibly get the virus, you still do it because you care.
You are one of the hardest workers I've seen. You try your best to keep our family going and keep a roof over our heads. All of us, Lucas, Ivan and I are all thankful and are so lucky for you to be our mom. You are always self sacrificing and that takes a lot of determination and courage and you do it all for your family.
Sometimes you even have to clean places with people that may have been exposed to Coronavirus. And I know how hard it is when it spreads and how you don't want to hurt your family. You’re a single mother but that doesn’t mean you aren’t the best one ever. I wish I could say more, but hopefully you will continue to be the great mom you are. You are my hero.
Love,
Owen
April 21, 2020
"Dr. Stroble,
You are my hero. I think you are brave because you go into work during the pandemic. You are helpful because you help people with their mental or physical problems. You are determined to help you to the best of her ability and honest about your problems. You care for your patients in all of your heart and you are selfless to put your life in danger for other people. "
Zoe
April 21, 2020
Dear Mom & Dad,
I take you as my everyday heroes because you both are incredibly self-sacrificing. Whenever I feel horrible I can talk to you in a way that you don’t judge me. Another thing is that when I am bored I can ask if you want to play something and you say yes! I just want you to know that I sincerely love you and couldn’t be more blessed in any way. Self-sacrificing, perseverant, and loving is what you are during this time of the COVID19.
Another thing is you aren't just good to me, you are also good to the other people you come by. You sacrifice anything for me or my brother. You sacrifice time and love for us just to keep us happy, you would give a life for us. Self-sacrifice is something you are willing to do and without the two of you, well the world wouldn’t revolve the way I see it now, I would see it reverse instead of going forward. The toughest choices in life are sacrifices, but you will sacrifice anything for me.
With all my love,
Ryan
April 21, 2020
Dear Doctors
To all the doctors in the world, I know that your job is to help take care of people when they are sick or in pain.Today you are considered heroes because you are risking your life to save people's lives. You are not just worried about yourself and that is what we need at this time of a global pandemic.
Sincerely,
Brayden
April 21,2020
Dear 1st Responders,
I am so grateful for all of the 1st responders. I couldn't choose just one of them because they all have such important jobs. They are risking their health to help us.
I want to say thank you to the nurses because they are trying to help others recover from the virus. Nurses' job is to help people recover from disease or injuries but this time they are helping people even though their health is at risk.
I want to say thank you to police officers because they are helping keep people safe and are also risking their health. My dad is a police officer and he now doesn't bring his uniform into our home he keeps it at work so that way we don't get sick.
I would like to thank firefighters because they go into houses and buildings when they are burning down and save us even if the virus could be in their building. Many firefighters have gotten sick already which is very sad but also brave because they are risking their health for people.
I would like to say thank you to EMS because even though people could have the virus they are still picking people up from homes when they need to go to the hospital. So thank you to all of the 1st responders.
Sincerely,
Lilliana
April 21, 2020
Dear Mask Makers,
I believe you are heroes because you help people by sewing masks. That helps everyone in the world today by lowering the risk of them catching the virus, which shows you care.
What also shows you’re an everyday hero is the fact that even though others are making masks you're not just saying, ¨Since they're doing it, I don't have to.¨ This makes the world a better place because it shows others that you care about them. By making those masks, you have lowered the spread of Covid19.
Sincerely,
Zach
Credits:
Created with images by Sharon McCutcheon - "This is for all the essential workers everywhere. Thank you all. Stay safe, sending love. " • CDC - "When renovating a home, you should use a damp sponge or cloth to clean dust collected on a window sill, as the dust may contain asbestos or lead-based paint. Home maintenance is an ongoing process for any homeowner, and here we see an African- American woman who’d taken a damp sponge to her window’s frame, in order to remove accumulated dust particulates. Note how the homeowner had donned a pair of waterproof gloves, a facemask, and a pair of goggles, prior to beginning this task." • Darren Wanliss - "Farming" • Ashkan Forouzani - "untitled image" • Luke Jones - "English NHS nurse staff in personal protection equipment (PPE) Key worker " • Mick Haupt - "Thank you to all the essential workers still out doing their job during this pandemic. Trying to keep a semblance of normalcy in our crazy world at the moment." • Unknown - "Free photo Megaphone Shout Sound Man Loud Speaker Alert ..."