It’s been a hard year.
Obviously, like everyone, we’ve been trying to make the best decisions for our family during the coronavirus chaos. We took our energetic and social 4yo out of preschool and all Prince George’s parks activities on March 5, 2020. Literally overnight, she was no longer in school everyday, no longer in gymnastics, dance, tae kwon do, soccer and we cancelled upcoming plans for swimming classes.
In the beginning, she didn’t seem to mind going to Wheaton or Patapsco Parks every afternoon to go walking with baba and nanai but as time wore on, it became obvious that her world of four people was too small for her.
For a time, even the pony riding class was cancelled by Montgomery County Parks Wheaton stables but when it reopened, we returned. We reasoned that outdoor activities were likely safer due to natural ventilation.
After months of asking to go to 6 Flags or other locations like that, we learned of a tae kwon do school near our home that included practice in a forested clearing across from their dojo building. We joined that school.
After some time, Prince George’s County parks advertised tennis classes. Since tennis is outside, we thought it might be a good option, but they failed to get enough students. I posted on Nextdoor looking for tennis and someone recommended JTCC. We checked it out. It’s not exactly outside. Six tennis courts are covered by something like a giant tent. It’s not sealed so some outside air gets in and it’s not climate controlled, but it’s at least dry when it rains. This seemed like a good option, so we tried it. She seems to love it.
Prince George’s County Parks program just recently posted indoor gymnastics beginning in March 2021. I asked my husband and he said we should wait until Grandma gets her vaccination. It’s a good idea. Gymnastics, obviously, is indoors.
Ice skating is indoors, but they do not allow instructors to contact students, so all students under age 6 must have a parent on the ice. The Wheaton indoor ice rink is huge and they only allow a handful of students per class.
I’ve been thinking a lot about Scouts because I think she’d love it. She’ll be eligible to join in August 2021. I just discovered Prince George’s Parks Program has a skeet range with classes starting at age 11. Shooting skeet is an outdoor activity, but of course, it will be another 6 years before she’s eligible. I wonder what our lives will look it in six years vis-à-vis the coronavirus. http://pgparks.com/1283/Trap-Skeet
Despite her young age, she had done surprisingly well with online school. She is 100% online this year in PreK. While dad feels frustrated keeping her focused on some days, there are days when she’s fascinated by what’s happening on her computer screen. Her education seems to have grown by leaps and bounds. Dad is a major factor since his work is property management and it gives him time to take her out to nearby parks during the school breaks. She gets to run in the sun and burn some energy, which is critical to her ability to be calm during class.
It’s been a hard year.
We want to keep our family safe, especially since grandma is in her 70s and our daughter has clearly suffered in 2020 from the lack of access to her peers. She constantly asks us to play with her. She wants to play LEGOs, board games, chess, tag, hide and seek. One day during the Christmas/New Year’s school break, I counted over 20 times she asked me to play with her while I was teleworking.
There will be no vaccine for 5yos in 2021. There’s hope by the time the 2021/2022 school year rolls around that 12yos and up will have a vaccine allowing high school students to return to a relatively normal experience attending school in a public location.
Our school has recommended that our daughter test to see if they can get state approval for her to skip kindergarten and start 1st grade in August 2021. Her English language skills according to IXL are in the second grade range. I guess she won’t be able to start normal school until 2022.
It’s been a hard year.
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