Kazoo creators

Grade level teachers see their students every day.

For those who teach specials — music, art, gym, library and technology — it’s once a week.

That pattern is continuing during extended e-learning.

Jan Rittenhouse, who teaches music for kindergarten through fifth graders, explained that specials teachers are providing one lesson a week for students as schools are closed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Those lessons are designed to have students away from their electronic devices as much as possible.

“Because they have to spend so much time on their computers” for their other schoolwork, said Rittenhouse. “It’s been very interesting to come up with ideas to keep them off the screen as much as possible and still learn.”

For music, Rittenhouse has typically used a short online video to then lead her students to a lesson away from their devices. They often involve household items.

One such lesson asked the students to create different rhythms using forks and spoons.

Another, borrowed from another teacher via a Facebook post, was to create a kazoo at home. That project involved an empty toilet paper roll, a rubber band and wax paper.

A layer of wax paper, attached with the rubber band, is wrapped around one end of the toilet paper roll. (Parents helped out by poking a small hole in the toilet paper roll as well to allow air to escape.)

“The kids absolutely loved it,” said Rittenhouse.

One of her upcoming lessons will involve using bowls and jars to create water drums. Students will compare and contrast the sounds that can be made using various vessels with different amounts of water in them.

Each of the lessons involve a few questions to help verify that students have done the required work.

The biggest challenge of teaching from a distance, Rittenhouse said, has been not being able to give and receive immediate feedback.

“I think communication for me has been the hardest thing … for kids to understand what you’re trying to request of them, especially at the younger ages,” she said. “Not being face-to-face, you can’t just explain things to the kids so easily. It’s a different world now.”

At the same time, though, she said parents have been helpful. That’s been a key as she works with about 700 students from multiple schools.

“I am just so grateful for all the parents out there who are helping these kids to do this e-learning,” Rittenhouse said.