Singing, field trips, group lunch: Centre County students hopeful return to normal is here to stay

After two tumultuous years, most pre-pandemic school activities have reemerged across Centre County, as teachers and students look back at a school year drawing to a close and look cautiously ahead.

Desk groupings, field trips and end-of-the-year activities have become possible again as districts have lifted more restrictive COVID mitigation procedures while still monitoring cases. Districts switched to virtual or hybrid instruction in spring 2020 and many restrictions were still in place for the 2020-2021 school year, despite returning to in-person instruction.

State College Area School District was the last to lift its mask policy at the end of March this year, with most other local school districts making masks optional in December.

With COVID-19 cases increasing again across the U.S., some school districts in the Northeast have begun to bring back mask mandates and recommendations, the Associated Press recently reported. SCASD Superintendent Bob O’Donnell didn’t rule out future changes in an email sent to families on Monday addressing an increase in student and employee COVID cases.

“Should we see our community return to the CDC’s High level, we would reinstitute masking consistent with CDC guidance,” he wrote. “Additionally, we’d look to our Health and Safety team for recommendations in line with local conditions, which could include increasing mitigation for specific classrooms, buses or schools.”

Centre County remains in the “low” community level, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Thursday update.

Long-awaited return to pre-pandemic activities

State College Area School District used a phased approach to ease students’ and teachers’ transitions, lessening physical distance requirements and gradually adding more opportunities and activities.

Students at Ferguson Township Elementary School spoke Wednesday about what’s changed in the past couple of months. Some classes have kept desks social distanced for the remainder of the school year, while some have returned to desk groupings.

Third grader Liam Reimherr said he wants to be in a desk group next year, but right now he prefers the distance between desks.

“I think it’s better because in case someone gets a cold or something, they won’t be able to spread it to others,” he said.

Districtwide, students are allowed to play with equipment during gym and recess, choirs are allowed to sing instead of hum and intramural sports have returned.

Scotty Young, a fifth-grader, said he feels much less isolated compared to previous years. He’s able to high-five his classmates and play games with them at recess.

“In the summer going into fifth grade, I was really hoping that sometime this year things would go back,” he said.

Gwen Yerka, a fourth-grader, said she’s been dreaming about the return to normal since second grade. The return of games, field trips and end-of-year activities is the most fun she’s had in school in years.

“I feel like I have so many friends,” Gwen said. “I’m getting together with my friends that I couldn’t play with last year because they were in different classes.”

For Park Forest Elementary principal Jessica Quinter, the differences in student’s attitudes have changed significantly over the past few months.

“The level of engagement and interaction has increased significantly,” Quinter said. “Standing in the lobby area in the morning as kids come in, it’s fun to see smiles, to interact and say hello.”

In April, students at Penns Valley Elementary spoke about how changes in the lunchroom offered them more social freedom.

First grader Chloe Stover said she can sit and talk with her best friends at lunch now that social distancing has lifted and students no longer have to sit facing the wall.

The changes have also made lunchtime easier for teachers, Penns Valley Elementary principal Shannon Reeder said.

“It helps with coverage and it helps our custodians,” Reeder said. “It’s louder but it’s much more social.”

A focus on social and emotional skills

For teachers and administrators, lifting social distancing requirements has allowed them to focus on social and emotional skills, a key aspect of elementary learning.

“Many of them had limited social interactions during times where they’re learning how to grow and develop as an individual and how to interact with others,” Quinter said. “We’ve definitely placed that at the forefront of what we’ve been doing and focusing on this year.”

Kim Wilson, a second grade teacher at Park Forest Elementary, stressed the importance of a holistic approach to teaching.

“We’re looking at the whole child,” Wilson said. “Their academics, how they interact socially, how they are feeling emotionally. We don’t just teach reading, writing, math, science, social studies. We teach the whole child.”

But jumping back into collaborative work after a two-year break can be difficult for students and teachers. Melanie Wassom, an art teacher at Park Forest Elementary, said reintroducing group work can be a balancing act.

“As humans, we are relational beings, we need one another,” Wassom said. “But we’ve had to keep the kids physically distanced for such a long time that I think teachers are still struggling to figure out what steps we need to take to make sure everyone feels emotionally safe as well as physically safe.”

Throughout the last few years, teachers say they’ve learned to be creative with their lessons and methods, learning to balance in-person instruction with technology.

Wilson said her class has incorporated technology into presentations and projects but still uses hands-on materials for basic lessons.

Regardless of this year’s challenges, teachers and students are optimistic about the years to come.

“I would promise anyone who came to this building for even just a few hours that you would see hope for the future here in what these children do everyday,” Wassom said.