Teachers Everywhere
Coping with Covid19
June 2020
Kristin Oyen is a preschool teacher from New Jersey. I wanted you to get to know her because many of you may be “confused” and “stressed” about how to do your job if we are still under the Covid dark cloud when school begins for 2020. We didn’t learn how to do this in college, did we?
Kristin has some insight and suggestions that may be just what you need to inspire you and give you some direction.
Plain and simple, like you, I have always loved children. I worked in a local daycare for five years, babysat, was a nanny, and substitute taught. Any job I have ever had has never been a job because I have been fortunate enough to surround myself by my favorite kind of people, tiny humans! I began my teaching career as a Preschool teacher in September 2012 at Milton Elementary School in Jefferson, a beautiful woodsy, lake filled town like most in northern New Jersey. My position has changed a bit over the years, and for the past four years I have taught a full-day special education class.
I have worked with amazing paraprofessionals who fondly refer to our little bubble as Oyenland.
In March when distance learning began I was two months away from my wedding and in the process of finalizing the purchase of my forever-home with my fiance.
We ended up postponing our wedding, however the stars aligned and we were able to move into our home a few weeks later amidst the quarantine. It was in the corner of my new basement that I knew Oyenland Distance Learning Preschool would be born.
I recorded a group time video to send to my students and while rewatching it I thought, "I should share this on my Facebook page." I spared my dignity as Kristin and shared a glimpse into Miss Oyen's preschool life of singing, silliness, wiggling and magic. The video was extremely well-received.
I try to share activities from my weekly lesson plans with families following the Facebook page: www.facebook.com/missoyen as well as tips and activities I find around the internet. Our Preschool team follows monthly themes; last month was circus, this month farm and next month, ocean. Many of the activities correspond with those themes.
One of my favorite weeks was a holiday week. I have shared those plans with you and highlight some of the activities in the attachment on the next page.
