Thread by @dahliabazzaz, A month ago, my colleagues and I on the @seattletimes education team [...]

A month ago, my colleagues and I on the @seattletimes education team began covering the biggest story of our lives. We produced the earliest on-the-ground reporting in the country about how #coronavirus impacts youth and public schools.

Let& #39;s take a look back.
#waedu

It all started with a cautious superintendent in the Northshore School District.

In late February, @RyanBlethen and I covered the shutdown of Bothell High School, likely the first closure of a public school in America due to concerns about coronavirus. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/health/bothell-high-school-closed-thursday-in-an-abundance-of-caution-over-coronavirus-fears-after-staffer-traveled-internationally/">https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-n...

Bothell High School closed Thursday-Friday in ‘abundance of caution’ over coronavirus fears

The Northshore School District's superintendent decided to close the school after a Bothell High employee returned from traveling internationally during last week's midwinter break. The school will...

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/health/bothell-high-school-closed-thursday-in-an-abundance-of-caution-over-coronavirus-fears-after-staffer-traveled-internationally/

I was just moving into a new apartment when King County recorded the first U.S. COVID-19 death on Leap Day. Things escalated quickly from there. More than 100 schools closed for days at a time in the weeks that followed. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/an-abundance-of-caution-as-more-coronavirus-cases-emerge-schools-in-washington-state-are-closing-cleaning-and-waiting/">https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-n...

‘An abundance of caution’: As more coronavirus cases emerge, schools in Washington state are...

As school officials wait on test results to see whether their schools had been exposed to the illness caused by SARS-CoV-2, many told the public they're taking some extra precautions, including more...

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/an-abundance-of-caution-as-more-coronavirus-cases-emerge-schools-in-washington-state-are-closing-cleaning-and-waiting/

Northshore stepped up its response. The district shut down for a day to provide online training foreducat ors & announced soon after it would close for two whole weeks.

The first questions about access to education in this new climate began to emerge https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/online-learning-and-equity-in-the-age-of-the-coronavirus/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

As Northshore closes schools over coronavirus, will other districts follow? Schools grapple with...

For private schools, the decision to move online is simpler. But for many school districts, it's a question of educational equity.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/online-learning-and-equity-in-the-age-of-the-coronavirus/

Soon, the closures in other places proved so frequent that trying to cover them all was futile. So @LaurenFlannery3, @hillman_anne and I created a tracker sourced from the hundreds of emails we received and daily updates from @waOSPI. https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/is-my-school-closed-today-heres-a-list-of-coronavirus-related-k-12-and-college-closures-in-washington-state/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

Is my school closed today? Here’s a list of coronavirus-related K-12 and college closures in...

Some schools have shut down because of confirmed cases of COVID-19, others "out of an abundance of caution."

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/is-my-school-closed-today-heres-a-list-of-coronavirus-related-k-12-and-college-closures-in-washington-state/

Recognizing how scary all this news must be, @HannahFurfaro then wrote about how to talk to kids about the virus, and answered parents& #39; burning questions.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/how-to-talk-to-kids-about-the-novel-coronavirus/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education... https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/what-if-school-closes-answers-to-common-questions-about-the-coronavirus-and-schools/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

What if school closes? Answers to common questions about the coronavirus and schools

FAQ: We answer your top questions about school closures in the midst of Washington's novel coronavirus outbreak.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/how-to-talk-to-kids-about-the-novel-coronavirus/

Some kids were already taking proactive measures, like Avi Schiffmann, a Mercer Island teen who created a central database to track COVID cases around the world https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/qa-avi-schiffmann-the-washington-state-teen-behind-a-coronavirus-website-with-millions-of-views/">https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-n...

Q&A: Avi Schiffmann, the Washington state teen behind a coronavirus website with millions of views

Schiffmann, who attends Mercer Island High School and Bellevue College, shared his thoughts on the pandemic and his site's success.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/qa-avi-schiffmann-the-washington-state-teen-behind-a-coronavirus-website-with-millions-of-views/

Just 1 week after the first death, we were querying districts about whether they& #39;d follow Northshore& #39;s lead. Many of its neighbors said no, including Seattle, b/c equity
https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/as-schools-around-the-region-make-tough-calls-on-coronavirus-seattle-public-schools-announce-they-will-remain-open/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education... (our editor @Joy_Resmovits picked this 1 up cuz we were drowning in stories)

As schools around the region make tough calls on coronavirus, Seattle Public Schools announce they...

The district's reasoning boiled down to educational equity -- which is also why, officials said, going online only is not an option.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/as-schools-around-the-region-make-tough-calls-on-coronavirus-seattle-public-schools-announce-they-will-remain-open/

On March 9, everyone in the country had their eyes on Northshore, which began its first day of remote learning. I got some dispatches from parents and students from that day, showing the wide variation in experiences with the model https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/how-northshore-parents-handled-the-first-day-of-online-learning/">https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-n...

Dispatches from parents: Northshore School District’s first online-only day to prevent coronavirus...

For at least the next two weeks, these two families and others across the district of nearly 24,000 students, will swap daily classroom instruction for virtual assignments and video conferencing, a...

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/how-northshore-parents-handled-the-first-day-of-online-learning/

Then, March 11. What. A. Day.

In the morning, @GovInslee told districts to prepare contingency plans during a press conference. Then, @SeaPubSchools announced it would close for 2 weeks. Likely the largest school system in the country to do so at the time.

Other large districts dropped announcements shortly after. Staff absences were becoming unsustainable. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/inside-the-day-seattle-public-schools-decided-to-close-because-of-the-coronavirus/">https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-n...

Inside the day Seattle Public Schools decided to close because of the coronavirus

Superintendent Denise Juneau tried to keep Seattle schools open for as long as possible to avoid cutting off important social services to students. Here's what happened as the situation hit a...

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/inside-the-day-seattle-public-schools-decided-to-close-because-of-the-coronavirus/

Two days later, we all broke a site page view record with the Governor& #39;s order to close all schools in King County and then the state. https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/inslee-orders-all-private-public-k-12-schools-in-king-pierce-snohomish-counties-to-close-through-april-24/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

Inslee orders all private, public K-12 schools in King, Pierce, Snohomish counties to close through...

The directive comes just one day after the governor put all school districts in the state on notice to create plans in case they are ordered to close. He said he was planning to meet with superinte...

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/inslee-orders-all-private-public-k-12-schools-in-king-pierce-snohomish-counties-to-close-through-april-24/

With so many districts closed, @nealtmorton began asking the hard questions about what would happen to the tens of thousands of hourly workers who keep our schools running. https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/questions-swirl-for-bus-drivers-substitutes-and-other-hourly-workers-as-coronavirus-closes-schools/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

Questions swirl for bus drivers, substitutes and other hourly workers as coronavirus closes schools

As every school in Washington shutters for the next six weeks to slow the spread of coronavirus, thousands of hourly and part-time workers across the state are wondering if they'll be out of a...

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/questions-swirl-for-bus-drivers-substitutes-and-other-hourly-workers-as-coronavirus-closes-schools/

. @hillman_anne talked to childcare providers, who provide an essential service to workers on the frontline of the pandemic.
https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/social-distancing-is-impossible-in-a-preschool-child-care-during-coronavirus/

Then">https://www.seattletimes.com/education... she compiled educational resources for parents: https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/so-now-youre-a-teacher-educational-resources-to-use-during-the-coronavirus-school-closures/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

So now you’re a teacher: Educational resources to use during the coronavirus school closures

Educational resources for kids of all ages.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/social-distancing-is-impossible-in-a-preschool-child-care-during-coronavirus/

Since mid-March, when the state finally declared instruction was mandatory for all districts during the closures, we& #39;ve been tracking the uneven patchwork of efforts and equity concerns with remote learning.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/washington-education-officials-school-must-continue-even-during-coronavirus-closures/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education... https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/education/confusion-uncertainty-on-first-day-of-state-mandated-remote-learning-for-washington-school-districts/">https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-n...

Confusion, uncertainty on first day of state-mandated remote learning for Washington school...

Across the Puget Sound region on Monday, teachers, parents and students told stories of confusion and stress about how remote learning would be handled during the unprecedented statewide school...

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/washington-education-officials-school-must-continue-even-during-coronavirus-closures/

And, most importantly, we& #39;ve chronicled the experience for youth, talking with kids of all ages, with an emphasis on teens and those about to become the first in their families to attend college.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/in-their-own-words-washington-teens-share-how-the-coronavirus-pandemic-has-changed-their-lives/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education... https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/high-school-seniors-cope-with-the-loss-and-confusion-over-next-steps-during-coronavirus/">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

High school seniors cope with the loss and confusion over next steps during coronavirus

Everyone is feeling the sting of ruined plans. But for those who are poised be the first in their families to attend college in the fall, the loss is especially sharp.

https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/in-their-own-words-washington-teens-share-how-the-coronavirus-pandemic-has-changed-their-lives/

That& #39;s not even all the stories. To see everything we& #39;ve published, hop over to the education section.

And then subscribe.
https://www.seattletimes.com/education/ ">https://www.seattletimes.com/education...

It& #39;s been a wild ride so far. Thank you to all the kids, teachers and parents for sharing their stories and processing history with us in the digital and physical paper of this paper. We& #39;re here for you, and we& #39;ll always be listening.

Digital and print pages*

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🙃" title="Upside-down face" aria-label="Emoji: Upside-down face"> lol

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