Our RealCare® Baby customers have been asking us: How are other teachers using Baby in a pandemic? We know how hard teachers everywhere are working to keep their students engaged, and RealCare Baby is a great way to do that. In this blog series, we’ll share the success stories of several Family & Consumer Science (FCS) teachers who are finding creative ways to use RealCare Baby in a pandemic, including in online and blended learning environments.
Catch up: Read Minnesota FCS teacher Trude Sowada’s story here, and South Carolina FCS teacher Amy Waddell’s story here.
Meet Melissa Priester, Family & Consumer Sciences teacher in Grayslake, Il
Melissa Priester is a Family & Consumer Sciences teacher at Grayslake Central High School in Grayslake, Illinois. (You might recognize her from her appearance in our recent “Baby Means” video and webinar about addressing teen interpersonal skills in the classroom.) Normally, Melissa teaches her Family Relations and Parenting classes in person, sending Baby home with her ninth- through twelfth-grade students a few weeks into the semester. Since school started this year, however, Melissa’s classes have been entirely remote – but that isn’t stopping her from giving her students the opportunity to care for Baby in an overnight simulation.
“I’m doing several things differently this year. For instance, all demonstrations and Baby trainings are done over Zoom. The first time students will handle the Baby will be when they pick them up from school,” Melissa told us.
Teachers typically spend a few class periods reviewing how to respond to Baby’s cries for care, going over safe handling and providing opportunities for hands-on practice. As we shared in a recent blog, however, it is possible to show students by getting creative with technology. Melissa followed some of the steps we recommended in a recent webinar and used video conferencing tools to help her students prepare as much as possible.
Getting creative
“I spent 3 class periods preparing my [remote] students,” Melissa said. “I went through how to program Baby, journaling and logging, and turned Baby on demo mode. One of my Babies was on a regular schedule while we were talking. I also had my 7-year-old caring for the Baby in the background.”
Melissa says she used Google Forms to gather information from her students regarding their choice of Baby, pick-up times and other details. She taught from school the day her students picked up their Babies, having organized and programmed them beforehand.
Back to basics
One step Melissa took to make deployment and collection easier was borrowing other Babies from nearby schools. This meant she had enough to send infant simulators home with all of her students at once. Taking this step ensured she’d only be cleaning returned Babies once instead of several times. She also elected to send home only the “necessities” her students would need for Baby’s care – no car seat, extra clothes, diaper bag or blanket. Instead, each of her students will take home a bottle, two diapers, ID bracelet, outfit and care card. Melissa sanitized it all, then separated into Ziploc bags for every student.
“This year I am only sending home the basics for cleaning purposes, but the experience is real!” Melissa stated, explaining that she also plans to be a bit more lenient with her grading standards this year. For instance, she will grade failed head supports (instances where students fail to fully support Baby’s head, which registers on the post-simulation report) more lightly if they occur on the first day students have their Babies. She decided this knowing they may still be getting used to properly holding their simulators.
“All in all, it was more work than normal, but I wouldn’t classify it as harder,” Melissa told us. “Baby teaches more than caring for an infant. This project helps students understand the importance of balance, planning, and problem solving. Also, for many students, this project is a highlight of their year/high school experience. I want to give them a happy memory for this school year, even if it takes more work on my end. They are worth it!”
Catch up: Read Minnesota FCS teacher Trude Sowada’s story here, and South Carolina FCS teacher Amy Waddell’s story here.
Resources for continued learning
You can see more examples of Melissa’s students with their Babies by following her on Twitter: @TeamPriester
Check back soon to learn how other teachers are using RealCare Baby in a pandemic. In the meantime, you can use the below resources to learn more:
- Blog: “3 RealCare Baby Lessons You Can Facilitate Online”
- Blog: “7 Steps to Successful RealCare Baby Deployment (Whether You’re Teaching Remotely or In the Classroom)”
- Free guide: RealCare Baby Implementation Guide
You can also hear from Melissa by watching our on-demand webinar, “Teen Interpersonal Skills for Life: Engaging Lessons for the Classroom”
