I definitely thought the student in question was at least a middle schooler if not a high schooler until I scrolled down and saw the writing. 😳

I think this is happening to a less obvious degree in many classrooms, including at my school. My students know they can unmask in my classroom because I don’t wear a mask, but I think many are scared to unmask in certain other classrooms if the teacher is more on the paranoid side.

https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/eldorado-hs-teacher-separates-masked-students-from-un-masked/amp/

We have been masks-optional since mid-February. Today my kids told me that my colleague is still making them pull up their masks if they are wearing one. I checked with my principal about this.

I let my students wear their masks on their chins. I think for many, the mask will come off in phases, with first the nose showing, then the whole face showing with the mask under their chin, and then finally no mask. While it’s hard to understand as an adult, I can see how suddenly removing the masks they’ve worn for two years is scary for preteens and young teens. We should allow them to transition, rather than requiring masks either completely on or completely off.

My team is planning a fun field trip at the end of the year for our 7th graders. The question of who should get to go was raised, and they suggested that any kids without a disciplinary referral should be eligible.

I proposed requiring the students to have no Fs to attend, but my colleague said that’s not fair to kids who are trying but just can’t pass.

This is 7th grade. Everyone can pass their classes if they have good attendance and do the work. Starting in high school (9th grade), students must pass their classes to get the credits needed to graduate.

Today I was in a building on campus that I don’t visit often and realized the masks and social distancing signs were still up everywhere, so I took them down. 😎

I submitted my grades for the third quarter this morning. Of my 71 7th grade math students, 22 finished with an A or B (80% or higher) and 28 with an F (under 60%). Regardless of performance in their classes this year, they will all go to 8th grade next year and then high school, and only when they reach 9th grade will they start having to retake failed classes to be able to graduate. I hope it won’t be too late by then.

I have no issue with families choosing to switch to charter school, private school, homeschool, or moving out of the district or even the state. My concern with these numbers is that I believe at least some of the “missing” students are not doing any type of school at all and are falling through the cracks because we are no longer enforcing truancy laws.

https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/massive-enrollment-decline-creating-budget-issues-for-aps/6420896/?fbclid=IwAR0_TrkfdDVpyxPZ3TNPKU_ZxY7p8hsVJ9Fls5l3TPo46CF4EcQMUBVS9-Y

On March 14, I gave each of my 7th grade math students a little 50-cent pie that I’d bought at Walmart for Pi Day. (It’s a math thing; look it up. 😉) I had the kids go outside for this because they were definitely not going to be munching on pies in my portable, especially since the custodians are short staffed and my room doesn’t get the attention it needs.

I took group photos of each of my class periods with their pies and made them the cover photo of each class’s Google Classroom, which they seem to have enjoyed.

Upon showing my mom the photos, she started counting how many were wearing a mask. Keep in mind that we were outside eating and it’s been nearly a month since the end of the mask mandate.

Here are my counts:

54 of 55 7th graders pictured are wearing a mask.

21 of the 54 have the mask pulled down enough that at least their nose is visible.

14 of the 54 have the mask pulled down far enough that both their nose and mouth are showing.

Now that masks are optional in NM schools, the next task is going to be to convince students, as well as the majority of my colleagues, that’s it’s time to go mask-free.

With the majority of both staff and students at my school still wearing masks a month after the mask mandate lifted, I’m starting to wonder how much longer we are going to *allow* masks at school.

Students cannot wear hats, hoods, or sunglasses indoors, yet we are continuing to allow masks to cover over half of the child’s face.

My opinion is that starting next school year if not sooner, masks should only be allowed as an ADA accommodation for those with a serious health problem and must be N95, not cloth or surgical masks.

Albuquerque Public Schools lost 7% of its students in one year.

The lack of effort to account for these missing children is rather astounding.

Did they switch to a different schooling option (private, charter, another district, homeschool)? Did their families move? Are they just home and not attending school of any kind?

Does anybody care to find out?!

https://www.abqjournal.com/2482136/so-where-did-5500-aps-students-go.html

We don’t allow hats, hoods, beanies, or sunglasses in the classroom because they are a distraction.

So what do we call a cloth mask that covers the child’s nose and mouth? 🤔