The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
» Parents work to keep back-to-school rituals alive even with virtual learning,
They try to make first day special even if not sending them off.
There they were, grinning big for the camera, decked out in new clothes, a year older than the last time.
As with every first day of school, parents took to social media to post pictures of their students getting ready for the new year. Instead of heading off to begin their day with friends, many retreated to workspaces set up at kitchen tables, their bedrooms or in home offices where space has been designated for them.
School began Monday for several metro Atlanta school districts, including Barrow, Cobb, DeKalb and Fulton counties, as well as City Schools of Decatur. All of these opted to begin the school year online as the coronavirus infection rates remain high. In the meantime, parents said they are working to make virtual school as normal as possible, given the current schoolingfrom-home conditions.
“We wanted to get him excited,” Olivia Jackson said of son Noah, a third-grader at DeKalb County’s Briar Vista Elementary School. “This way, he’ll be engaged in learning. We tried other virtual classrooms over the summer and he hated them. It was like pulling teeth to get him on.
“It helps a lot to remind him ... it’s still school and you’ll still get in trouble with your teachers.”
Noah’s first day was monitored by his dad, Maurice Jackson, who is working from home. Class is
set up in the home office, complete with a map of the United States and other backto-school decorations adorning walls. For the first day, he sported new clothes, including a shirt featuring characters from the Minecraft video game.
“He was the first person logged into his classroom,” said Olivia Jackson, of Lithonia. “That’s how excited he was.”
In a photo posted on Twitter, 6-year-old Jace Bourgeois posed barefoot on his family’s front porch for a photo Monday morning to commemorate his first day of kindergarten at Addison Elementary in Marietta, in the Cobb County School District. Other photos show Jace at his “desk,” a corner of the kitchen table where his laptop and other supplies are handy.
“When it got time for school, we just tried to make sure they were in their own space,” said Jace’s mom, Chelsea Haley.
Haley is leading the virtual learning for Jace and his older brother, Jerome Robinson, a junior at Sprayberry High School, and sister, Paige Haley, a freshman at Sprayberry. Chelsea Haley said the family sat down for breakfast, another tradition they have, before taking pictures on the front porch.
Daniel Walker said his seventh-grader, Jackson, is starting the school year at home even as his school, St. Thomas More Catholic School in Decatur, is offering the option for in-person learning.
“We’re just not comfortable with it right now,” said Walker, of Decatur. “Everyone was fine with that.”
They started the day with breakfast and a first-day-ofschool photo. Jackson, 12, wore his uniform, still a requirement for virtual students.
“Last year, when remote learning began in March, they didn’t require them to be in uniform,” said Walker, of Decatur. “Now, we’ll make sure his uniforms are ready.”