26 CROSSROADS SCHOOL FOR ARTS & SCIENCES
FEATURE STORY
ADAPTING ADAPTING TO TO THE THE NEW NEW NORMAL NORMAL REMOTE LEARNING KEEPS STUDENTS SAFE AND ENGAGED. Year after year, Crossroads strives to foster students’ intellectual bravery and emotional resilience. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic underscored the vital need for these strengths of character, which our community demonstrated time and time again. News of the rapidly spreading coronavirus prompted Crossroads to begin developing an action plan in late February. By March 4, the School had formed an Emergency Response Task Force, led by Head of School Bob Riddle. The task force comprised senior administrators, Nurse Coordinator Paula Rickey, Trustee Ann Colburn and Crossroads parents and physicians Cara and Paul Natterson.
On March 11, the School canceled classes for the rest of the week to give teachers time to prepare for remote instruction beginning on March 16. In the weeks that followed, teachers and technology coordinators met repeatedly to review, implement and assess platforms and processes that could best approximate Crossroads in an online setting. There were some inevitable bumps in the road as we pivoted to a radical new way of teaching and learning. We took those lessons to heart and continued to adapt our approach to best suit the needs of our students and their families. As noted by Heather Heraeus, parent of two Elementary School students and one Middle Schooler, “This whole experience has been very thoughtful, purposeful and whole-child centered, with an emphasis on sticking true to the social-emotional principles that make Crossroads so magical.”
REENVISIONING EARLY EDUCATION The transition to remote instruction was perhaps most pronounced in the Elementary School, which had previously used technology in only very targeted ways. Forced to rethink this approach upon the campus closure, teachers quickly adapted to the new digital classroom. They provided the learning and fun that are characteristic of the Elementary School, using platforms such as Google Classroom, Zoom and Seesaw. The third graders, for example, created the School’s first virtual LA Fair. Meeting online in groups, students researched landmarks around the city, from the Venice Canals to the Watts Towers, and created an interactive presentation featuring videos, games and artwork. Elementary School science teachers Sasha Moore and Andy
Putnam created playful lessons that encouraged scientific discovery. In one video, Andy discussed cicadas and Sasha—from a safe distance outside Andy’s window— chimed in with additional facts about the insects while dressed as a cockroach! By the year’s end, the Elementary School had reimagined community connection in a variety of ways: Administrators and faculty read bedtime stories on Zoom twice a week; Middle Schoolers volunteered to lead daily virtual recesses; and each child received a weekly call from a faculty or staff mentor. In Rose Gatherings, the Moving Up Ceremony and a carpool parade, the Elementary School community demonstrated their creativity, care for and love of one another.
STUDENT-DRIVEN DISCOVERIES Also using Google Classroom, Zoom and the School’s website to deliver instruction, the Middle
Third grader Mo Oshinksy replicated Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Minecraft as part of a collaborate, interactive LA Fair.
Seventh grader Zack Belzberg worked from home with his highly studious study buddy.
