Joppa, Md. — As school closures halted face-to-face learning in the traditional sense, one Maryland teacher did not let COVID-19 damper the excitement in her classroom. The highly engaging virtual classroom of kindergarten teacher Kristen Roane, who is the July 2020 Remote Learning Showcase Recipient sponsored by the Maryland Society for Educational Technology, continued on modeling science experiments, hosting synchronous learning sessions, and interacting daily with her children to meet their needs. 

Roane's effort was unparalleled as one of her student's parents nominated her for the monthly showcase because of her relentless effort to keep instructional normal in a not so normal time.

"From day one of the school closure, [Roane] was providing quality learning content for us to complete at home.  She used Seesaw to deliver video lessons each day, and has really embraced the uncertainty of online teaching by taking the initiative to teach herself new skills, create and find fresh teaching content, and make the experience as smooth as possible for kids and parents," the parent wrote about Roane.

As parents continued to play a larger role in remote learning, Roane hosted weekly Zoom meetings with students and parents to give them regular updates on content and more importantly check in on their well being. Roane indicated she wanted to ensure her kiddos were as doing as well as possible with these daunting times. To show her passion one step further, Roane visited the homes of all her students -- while practicing appropriate social distancing guidelines -- to check-in and handout small gifts to each student; she was ready to meet each student's needs during the closure. 

"Kristen is a very creative teacher.  She did not let remote learning stop her from continuing her fun and engaging activities with the students," Patty Lee, Lower School Director at Trinity Lutheran School, shared how Roane continually engaged students even being so far away. "...she always had the students engaged in fun, hands on activities."