Transition of Online Learning to Face to Face

The COVID-19 pandemic has, without a doubt, changed the world, businesses, and our life, but education is a central area of life that has seen significant change. Students, schools, colleges, and universities have been deeply affected, and my four-year-old son has not been spared from the effects of this pandemic, in which learning is conducted online.

Meeting his teacher, classmates, and everyday activities are done virtually. Because of this mode of learning, getting to see everyone's face and making friends with his classmates is hard. Even the class activities such as the Linggo ng Wika, Community Helpers' Day, and their Moving up or Graduation were done online. During those online learning modes, I witnessed my son's short span of attention. For the first twenty minutes, he will participate in the class activities, but beyond that, he would start roaming around the house and playing with his toys. Because of this, I honestly doubt if he is learning something. Well, I can't blame my son's attitude because before the pandemic, my son used to get a tour of the school, go into classrooms, meet teachers, and mingle with his classmates and other students. 

Being back for face-to-face learning has been an adjustment for my son. After a year of online classes, my son is starting his Kinder classes in-person or face-to-face. As he entered kindergarten, my son had a hard time during the start of the classes. He doesn't eat his snacks because he gets shy and overwhelmed in the presence of other kids, and it took him a week before he could adjust. But thank God, after roughly three weeks of going to school, I was delighted when he told me, "Mommy, I am excited to go to school." I am relieved that my son was able to adjust. He shared with me that he has four friends who keep playing, which makes him happy. I am sure that engaging in various activities like dancing, singing, reciting, drawing, and more has helped him overcome his shyness, develop a love for learning, and build his social skills like sharing and making friends. 

                                             

Social interaction has a significant impact on the learning experience of my son. This proved that social interactions are essential to develop throughout childhood, and spending time with peers is typically part of that process. But of course, as parents, we play an indispensable role. In reality, children look to their parents for signs of safety. Parents may need to put more effort into expressing confidence and security with words and body language in addition to facial expressions. This is particularly important for young children who are not yet able to talk about feelings.