Our COVID-19 Diary

UPDATE 3/18/2020: I am receiving requests for access to the Google presentation from several people.  It is shared publicly for editing, but some school districts have blocked Google files that are not from the same domain.  Unfortunately, I cannot change anything on my end if that is the issue. Please feel free to start your own diary for your students if you are unable to access mine.  Also, please see the note below if you are trying to share this with your students.

Para obtener una traducción de esta publicación en su idioma nativo, haga clic en Google Translate a la izquierda.

We are navigating unfamiliar territory right now as countries around the world struggle to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.  As we witness unprecedented actions being taken such as extended school closures, I feel that it is important to capture the different ways that our society chooses to cope with the surreal existence that we suddenly face.  Of course, we can see this all around us thanks to the firehose of social media.  But, what if we took a moment to strip all of the extraneous political blustering and toilet paper hoarding away so that we could focus on the real thoughts and feelings of people who are dealing with this completely unfamiliar disruption of our normal lives?

Anne Frank’s diary gave us incredible insight into a period of history that many of us would never have understood, and compels us to learn from the mistakes of that dark time.  Would social media have amplified her voice or drowned it out?  So many of us have the opportunity to speak now, but have we actually increased the numbers of those who listen?

With these thoughts plaguing me deep into the night, I decided I wanted to find a way to concentrate the stream of experiences, especially of children, during the next few weeks.  So, I started a collaborative Google Slides presentation to which I would like to invite any student, ages 5-18, to contribute.  With so many students home from school for the foreseeable future, my hope is that those with internet access can take a few minutes to add their own perspectives to this presentation.  They will be able to read what others have to say, and I will choose some to post on this site for a larger audience. (NOTE: DO NOT MAKE A COPY OF THE SLIDE PRESENTATION UNLESS YOU JUST WANT TO USE IT WITHIN YOUR DOMAIN (WHICH IS FINE WITH ME).  JUST GIVE YOUR STUDENTS THIS LINK.  IF THE LINK DOES NOT WORK, PLEASE SEE THE NOTE AT THE TOP OF THIS POST.)

Here is the sample slide I provide in the presentation.

I will be monitoring the slide show closely for inappropriate content, or for any private information that should not be shared.  I hope that students in any country will feel comfortable adding to the slide show, although translating other languages may be a challenge.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email me, engagetheirminds@gmail.com  (Also, if you are in need of educational materials regarding the Coronavirus, please see this post.)

Please share the link to Our COVID-19 Diary from Kids Around the World with educators, parents, and guardians, so we can get a variety of contributions.

Thanks to SlidesMania for the great template!