For most of us, the start to this school year is unlike any other. Many are remote learning with no end in sight. Some are on-site but with a classroom looking incredibly different than before with plexi-glass shields around desks and masks required at all times. As we all transition into this very unusual school year, there is one thing that will not be new this year:
First week of school fails.
I always feel better about my first week of school fails knowing other moms are right there with me.
Here are my top 10 from myself and my friends; including fellow allmomdoes bloggers.
Dropping your kid off on-site on a remote only day. Some schools are in a hybrid model where students will have a mix of on-site days with remote only days. This mom happily dropped her two elementary kids to school, watched them have their temperatures taken by school staff and saw them walk through the school doors before she then drove home. Minutes later, the principal called indicating today was a remote only day for 5th graders so her 1st grader was welcome to stay but she had to come get the other one. Whoops!
White Claw can enters Zoom meeting. Kids get fidgety being on so many Zoom calls. If your child is working from the kitchen, this is a good “be warned” about what items are maybe within their reach. Apparently a second grader innocently picked up a white claw (this is an alcoholic beverage) can that was sitting near the recycling pile in their kitchen for the entire class to see.
Arriving to school on the wrong day. This one has made the list before and seems to be a common fail. However, this year it’s particularly good considering the extra measures taken prior to arriving for school. Temperatures taken, masks practically glued on their faces…only to arrive and wonder why the carpool line and parking lot was totally empty. Hey, at least they were prepared for the actual first day!
Teacher mistakenly not allowing their boss into a Zoom meeting. “I heard the Zoom doorbell ring which normally means a student is in the waiting room. I admitted them but then could not find that name on my class list. I said in question, Adam? Adam Simmons? I can’t find you on my list, I think you are trying to get into the wrong class”. Then I hear, “Hi, it’s Adam Simmons, the principal.” Oops! Please join us, Mr. Simmons! {Names changed.}
Keep your foot on the brake. This mom is “lucky” enough to have her kids on-site in school most days. However, when her first grader started freaking out over not being able to find his mask at the drop off line, she leaned back to help look for it which resulted in her foot coming off the brake. Nobody was harmed but the carpool attendant came over to ask if everything was ok. She was mortified, her son ended up getting a disposable mask from school and his mask was later found on the counter at home.
Put some clothes on. In this same incident with the foot coming off the brake, my friend was then forced to get out of the car to come around to help hunt for the mask. In her pajamas. I think any mom can relate to this but the whole scene caused quite the embarrassing morning for my friend.
No air conditioning at work. This isn’t really a fail but it’s too funny a visual to not include. I know we can all agree mask wearing is hot. Days I wear mine for hours on end at work, I am glistening by the end of the day for sure. One of my teacher friends in WA state told me she was in her classroom despite her students being remote. She had a mask on per protocol and the school has no air conditioning. She ended up putting a little personal fan around her neck because she was so hot while trying to teach. She teaches second grade so you can imagine all those kids on video were freaked out by their sweaty teacher. Welcome to class!
Baby rolling (safely) down a hill during a Zoom call. The baby was ok! One of my teacher mom friends was teaching a lesson in her backyard and had to go grab something quickly inside. Her baby was safely playing on a blanket but wouldn’t you know, in the 20 seconds it took to grab what she needed, her baby somehow managed to start rolling down a small hill in their yard. I’m sure the students laughed at their teacher freaking out on Zoom!
Who let the dogs out? One of my friends runs a dog sitting business in her home. On her daughter’s first day of remote first grade, the teacher suggested if possible, for students to be in a quiet room with few distractions including pets. Wouldn’t you know, it was at that very moment a dog who had just arrived that morning decided to jump on top of the six year old causing her to completely meltdown due to being startled, upset by a small scratch and overall embarrassed it was all caught on video.
System models, not people models. On the second day of school, my science teacher friend asked her students to find examples online of system models. When searching, several of them reported that only bikini models were showing up. She immediately decided they had learned enough for the day on that topic and moved right along.
Any funny/embarrassing/relatable stories you’d like to share? We’d love to hear!
Related:
Read more of Stephanie’s contributions to allmomdoes here.
