Social distancing might keep Pitt Meadows Elementary students apart, but those in Lyanna Sweetnam’s class have come together for a special project with a special message.
Her Grade 6-7 French Immersion class put together a video from their class to the world.
“My class made a video of encouragement and gratitude with the intention of sharing it with our community and others,” Sweetnam explained.
She put the idea out to her class of 28 students during a conference call in early April, and with 27 of the kids participating, she was able to complete and post their video on Friday.
She gave them creative freedom to choose what message they wanted to share and how they wanted to share it, as long as the clip was between five and eight seconds, and was positive.
“I had been thinking about how to approach this project when the Full House theme popped in my head, and I started to picture all of my kids in the intro to the TV show. The song is upbeat and shares a message about staying connected and supporting one another even when times are difficult… perfect!” Sweetnam said.
“I became instantly excited and prepared to share the idea with the kids. They openly and excitedly accepted the task, wanting to be involved in a project to encourage and thank others.”
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“I wanted to do a project that would engage the kids, involve them in the community, raise spirits, share a positive message and connect us as a class,” Sweetnam told The News. “I knew I wanted to do a video, because they enjoy projects like that. Additionally, it would be a way that everyone could participate and we could seem together, no matter the distance between us at this time.”
She wasn’t surprised by the results, Sweetnam said, calling her kids creative.
“I am definitely happy with and proud of what they came up with,” she said.
The reaction to the video, so far, has been nothing but positive, said the teacher.
“I have had people tell me that the video made their day, that they watched it multiple times over, I have had people tell me that they are proud of the kids and that the kids should be proud as well, I have had people tell me that they couldn’t stop smiling while watching it, I have had people tell me that they were moved to tears by the video. I, myself, watch it everyday and smile being able to see my students happy, silly, positive, grateful and connected.”
While she and the students have been coming together digitally, it’s still not the same as all being together in a classroom, the teacher shared.
“It has been a challenge for everyone in many ways, navigating our current situation,” Sweetnam elaborated. “Personally, on top of the technical challenges of my job at the moment, I miss my students, the dynamic we have in the classroom, teaching them in the same room, laughing with them, interacting with them in a way that online conference calls and emails cannot replace.”
This fun project, however, felt like it helped to bring them all together.
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