In an effort to encourage people from other countries to also contribute to our COVID-19 Diary from Kids Around the World, I have added a Google Translate button to this site. In addition, I have added Spanish instructions to the slide show. Since I used Google Translate to interpret my instructions, I hope that someone who knows Spanish will let me know if I made any goofs! Please go to the link above to find out more about this collaborative project. If you have any other suggestions for helping this slide show to become more global, please add them to the comments below.
In the meantime, here is another recent entry from the diary. I love that Estefany gave a book recommendation (and it happens to be one I haven’t read!), and it would be fun to see more of those!
I have been uplifted by the many videos that have been shared on social media lately showing how people are making their own joy with others despite our physical distances. I wanted to share a few today.
This first one was brought to my attention in a blog post by @LarryFerlazzo:
Here are two young people who chose to give their elderly neighbor a concert:
For a dose of absolutely adorable cuteness, you should listen to “Virus in a Tree.”
My daughters (Fenn 4, Bess 6) made a virus related song today. It’s called ‘Virus in The Tree’. It’s written from the perspective of the virus. They’re trying their best to process it all. 🌳 pic.twitter.com/27RuYeWkOo
And finally, for those of us looking for some humor, watch this clever and talented family perform the pandemic version of “One Day More” from Les Miserables. (Thanks to @jtrayers for sharing this on FB.)
I’ve seen a large contingent from New Jersey, which is actually where I was born and lived until I was 10 years old. Some other trends I’ve seen – almost everyone has a pet, most students seem to miss going to school (although there are a few who are loving this educational model!), and many students are enjoying the extra family time.
I hope that we will get more entries this week! See the above link for how to access the diary and troubleshooting tips.
I’ve noticed that a popular activity during our COVID-19 pandemic right now is scavenger hunts. My favorite scavenger hunt app is Goosechase, which I wrote about in January of this year. Although I don’t currently have students, I immediately thought of this app when pondering how I would engage my students during online learning. I considered making a GooseChase for other teachers and families to use, but a few others have beat me to the punch – and done much better jobs than I would have done.
First of all, Goosechase itself has begun a “Community Cup 2020” that is open to all to participate. It runs from now until April 3rd, with new missions being added each day. (Apparently the first day included a mission for people to do their best Batman impression, and the video compilation of select submissions is super cute.) The page describing the contest also includes a how-to video in case you are new to Goosechase. Since this is an app that asks for photos and videos of people doing (usually) silly things, please be conscious of privacy issues, especially for minors.
Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta have also created their own special pandemic-inspired Goosechase. They tweeted that they have one called, “Quarantine Can’t Keep Us Down,” which ends tomorrow, March 26th. You can download the app and do a search for that game title to participate. It has so many missions that I couldn’t count them, and it would definitely be a fun activity for the whole family. According to @BGCMA_Clubs on Twitter, this is just the first of an educational series of scavenger hunts, so follow them on Twitter if you are interested in participating in future hunts.
For those of you who are keeping up to date with our COVID-19 Diary by Kids Around the World, today’s update is a poignant reminder of the sacrifices being made by many to help stave off the spread of this horrible pandemic. As you can read in the entry below, some first responders cannot live with their families during this time because their work opens them up to being infected every day. Let’s thank Mary, her family, and all of the other people who are doing so much to help us during these scary times!
P.S. If you want to have your student add to the diary, please read the post linked above. It gives important information about how to share it, and why some may be having technological issues.
If you haven’t seen the updates that I’ve made to this post, please check it out. There have been some difficulties out there in accessing the COVID-19 Diary that I shared. I think I inadvertently turned off editing when I tried to fix them, but I’ve turned it back on. Unfortunately, you may still have issues if your district blocks access.
Here are two more entries from Our COVID-19 Diary by Kids Around the World. It looks like a lot of contributors own cats, and all of them, so far, have pets! Hmm… I’m already seeing lots of math possibilities with this project as more people add to it – graphing pet numbers, mapping locations, etc…
If you haven’t shared the Diary with your students and asked them to add to it, please do! I would like to make this as globally inclusive as possibly. (Did I just make up a new phrase? I’ll have to Google that…)
