In a time of social distancing, teachers throw a neighborhood car parade
Through a group chat, Edison Elementary teachers planned a car parade in their students’ neighborhood on Wednesday afternoon.
Burbank Unified voted to close schools for at least two weeks on a Friday night, leaving teachers no time to explain or say goodbye to their students.
Although an extended two-week spring break could have been met with excitement for many students, the seriousness of the novel coronavirus left many worried and cooped up in their homes.
Second-grade teacher Shelly Zepeda saw a Facebook post about a community finding ways to connect during a time of mandated social distancing to celebrate a boy’s birthday.
It inspired her and third-grade teacher Jennifer Flores to pitch the same idea for Edison Elementary.
About 20 teachers participated, with principal Laura Flosi leading the car caravan through the neighborhood.
They met in the school’s parking lot at noon and drove through the neighborhood for over an hour. Some staff packed their cars with family members and pets.
“I’ve never seen so many kids out on the front porch or on the driveway with signs cheering us on. We miss them, and we can’t stand not being back at school with them,” Flosi said. “This was a safe distance that we could see all of our families and not get sick or hurt.”
In the principal’s email to families, she stressed a reminder to keep a requisite 6-foot distance at all times or she’d have to call off the parade.
Students and families were waiting on lawns and driveways with special shout-outs to their teachers and messages like “We miss you” and “Help, I don’t no common core” — the latter sign most likely created by a parent who took a shot at homeschooling.
Brenda Etterbeek, her husband and two children put out camping chairs for the parade. She said her 8-year-old son, a second-grader at Edison, woke up early to make signs with leftover poster boards from previous school projects.
“Edison is a special community school, where my children have thrived,” Etterbeek said. “The principal, staff and teachers pour their hearts into our children every day. It has been the most challenging part of this shelter-in-place experience.”
Local community members, including older residents, also came out of their houses to wave. A police officer helped control traffic as the caravan made its way through busy streets.
Flores, who spotted 15 of her students, said the posters were a surprise for teachers.
Although most staff quickly jumped at the chance to connect with students, a couple of teachers stayed at home to work on online curriculum set to be implemented next week.
The California Department of Education released new state guidelines for distance learning last Wednesday, leaving educators a short window to put together plans for a primarily online classroom.
Debra Duardo, Los Angeles County’s superintendent of schools, recommended that all public schools in the county remain shut down until May 5. Burbank Unified has not released a specific return date yet, but school officials plan to keep schools closed until the county education and health departments recommend otherwise.
“I am really just trying to embrace what my kids need to get them through the rest of the year,” Flores said. “I’m trying to think how I can meet the needs of all my students and to close [an educational] gap for them so when they enter into fourth grade, they feel competent.”
Flores added that one of the challenges is to be mindful that each student will have a different family dynamic that could affect learning from home.
