At Porter Ridge Middle School, Caroline Skeen teaches English as a second language. She prepared her mobile classroom for her children by entering it for the first time on Wednesday. There is a lot of work to be done, she noted, and it’s different from her traditional classroom from last year.
However, she is ready, with bags of decorations inspired by nature, such as cacti and mushrooms, which her students have grown accustomed to and which she feels contribute to a relaxed learning atmosphere.
“I think having and appreciating the outdoors kind of feels like something different for kids who spend their entire school day indoors,” Skeen added.
Union County Schools, like many other school systems in the state, begin classes on Monday. And Skeen is anticipating more than just a new classroom. She is getting ready to adjust to new state regulations that limit cell phone use in the classroom as an ESL teacher.
Many students do have translators on their phones, which is a major factor in the difficult process of learning and adapting to the English language. In order to have that accurate translation, we will just need to discover new resources, such as online Chromebook tools.
According to Skeen, she is eager to establish relationships with her new students and get back in touch with her former ones.
