Teacher Transitions

Teacher Transitions By Danelle Taylor Johnston

18 | LLA Mirror On Friday March 13 just before the last class of the day got out students and teachers got a text that would change their lives in ways they could not imagine. It read “TK-12 will begin distance learning from March 16-20. On-campus school is canceled.” From the front office, cheers from students could be heard from across the campus. At that moment students felt like they would be headed into a vacation. Five weeks later students and teachers find themselves isolated at home, Zooming for class time, and being required to wear a mask if they leave their homes, with no end in clear sight. For teachers the transitions to online has been an enormous adjustment resulting in many new obstacles. “I’ve missed getting to see my students in person. Also, when teaching from home, the hours have been longer and the workload larger, so it has taken more of my time away from family,” Tom Quishenberry, Bible teacher said. The hardest part for Richard Davisson, science teacher, has been “dealing with a sedentary lifestyle.” He

compensate for all the sitting time on-line learning has created by utilizing his home gym. “I also take my dog and cat on walks, and I have picked up yoga to make sure I can get a good stretch in!” Davisson said. Transition to on-line learning has also created opportunities for new technology skills for teachers. All teachers have had to learn to teach via Zoom. JO Cordero, campus pastor, has learned “Rapid video editing” skills creating videos like pastor interviews for campus ministries social media. Heidi Elssmann, physics teacher, is spending more time “navigating ideas for teaching through technology. “It’s really weird [to be home all day] on a school day,” Elssmann said. Kate Lewis, science teacher, has been upping her MYLLA skills with on-line assignments and realizing, along with all the other teachers, there is still much more to learn. Though teaching online has increased the workload for teachers, but teachers are happy to do it and happy that they are still able to connect

Photos from left to right: Collage created by Kate Lewis for LLA students. Lynne Hattendorf quarantine baking, Richard Davisson’s photo of his wife and cat on a walk.

and teach their students via zoom & MYLLA. In addition Quishenberry said, “ It has been good to have my family together more.” leaves them on the porches at [her] relatives’ homes in Calimesa and Yucaipa.” Hattendorf said, her “next project will be baking cookies and leaving them at the fire than that, I have often seen in my life how God transcends the bad we encounter and works good in our lives.” Though we are all practicing social distancing,

“We’re never lost if we can find each other!”

Lynne Hattendorf is using her time to bake and spread love in the community. Hattendorf is “baking almost every other day!” Then she wraps up her baked goods and adds “a little note and station down the street.” Through all the fear, the sadness, and worry, Quishenberry said, “I have peace because God has promised to walk through everything with us. But more Student News | 19 we are still connected. As Cordero said, “Knowing that the greater community is committed to staying connected” brings him peace. “We’re never lost if we can find each other!”