Two months after students at Notre Dame School last saw their teachers in the classroom, they had the opportunity Friday morning to see those teaches again, from a distance.
Teachers practiced social distancing and lined up outside the building so that parents could load their kids into their vehicles and drive past.
The last day students and teachers were in the classroom was March 15, said principal Tom Smyth. Notre Dame has an enrollment of 195 students and has 13 teachers and 3-4 paraprofessionals.
“Students have been in contact with their teachers regularly and still see them on the computer, but they miss the human contact,” Smyth said. “We just wanted to let students and teachers see each other one last time.”
Mia Cleary of Clarendon Hills said her children, Max, a second-grader, and Mikey, who is in pre-kindergarten, both were very eager to see their teachers again, even if it wasn’t up close.
“Their teachers said ‘goodbye’ in March and thought that would temporary, but it hasn’t worked out that way,” Cleary said.
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Laura Claxton of Clarendon Hills said her daughters, Ruby, a second-grader, and kindergartener Millie, also were excited about heading over to Notre Dame to say goodbye to their teachers.
“They FaceTime and Zoom with their teachers, but don’t have access to the teachers across grade levels like they do when they are in school,” Claxton said. “This was a great opportunity for everyone to see each other again, and it shows the staff’s dedication that they were willing to do this.”
Kelly Gallaher of Clarendon Hills said her daughters, Maddie, a second-grader, and Sloane, a kindergartener, have missed seeing their teachers.
“They were excited to be able to see them again because they’ve really missed the interaction,” Gallaher said.