4/28/20 Rachel Yang Period 5

4/28/20
Rachel Yang
 Period 5
Sophomores 2020

• What is it like working from home?

Working at home has made my day a lot less stressful. Since all my work is right in front of me, I no longer have to spend an hour of my day commuting on the bus. Even though my normal school day started 3rd period, I would have to stay after school so by the time I got home and was ready to do homework it would be around 7. I also got easily distracted when I did homework,  so I used to finish all my assignments pretty late at night, but the new remote learning schedule allows me to start my work whenever I want. I also find myself being productive for most of my classes. Especially on day B where I have to wake up early for a class, I will just dedicate the whole morning to work so then I don't have to worry about my assignments later. However, there have been some drawbacks to working at home. While I still find myself being productive, there are often days when I become lazy and much less motivated to do work. The classroom setting helped me get in the mindset to focus and work, but now that I'm in my own room, it is harder for me to focus. I also feel like I'm not obtaining as much information as I used to since the learning is all on myself now, especially with the AP test coming up soon.

• What are the updates around the world/community regarding the virus?

Today it was announced that the U.S. has officially surpassed one million cases and over 50 thousand people have lost their lives due to the virus. While New York continues to have the most cases in the country, there have been guidelines set for the reopening of the state. Governor Cuomo plans on following CDC guidelines on when it is appropriate to slowly start reopening; starting off by opening construction and manufacturing businesses. In addition, there are new updates revolving around the NYC grading system for students. High school students now have the opportunity to take classes based on a pass or fail system. We are also being given extra time (if needed) to complete our courses for the year.

• Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.

The situation has grown to be much larger and scarier than I expected. It is crazy to think that a little over a month ago my friends and I were looking at the citizen app seeing that there were only 10 cases in the city and now the number has grown tremendously. I miss being able to see all my friends and hanging out after school. It's also crazy to know that my last day of sophomore year was in March. I really wasn't expecting school to be cancelled for the whole school year and honestly, I'm a little worried for the transition into junior year. Despite this, I am thankful that my family has not been dramatically affected and we've been trying our best to take precautionary measures when we have to go outside for groceries.