TRINITY HIGH SCHOOL IB STUDENTS COVID-19 PANDEMIC JOURNAL PROJECT
TRINITY HIGH SCHOOL IB STUDENTS COVID-19 PANDEMIC JOURNAL PROJECT
All-Girls Catholic School IB Historians take on a Journaling Project during the Shelter-in Place order to Recall Historic Pandemic for Future Trinity Blazers in Years to Come
While most schools have implemented eLearning during mandated “shelter in place” directives, Trinity High School’s Social Studies Department Chair, Julie Klein, has added another element to the curriculum of her International Baccalaureate (IB) History classes. While in the midst of this historic pandemic, her 47 high school juniors are also keeping a journal of their personal experiences during this exceptional period of time. Not only will this project be beneficial to the students who are journaling, but it will also serve as an archive of their struggles and victories that they can pass down to future Trinity High School Blazers.
Julie Klein assigned the Pandemic Journal on March 19th telling her IB students, “Your unique daily observations will serve as primary sources to people in the future. Be authentic. Be honest. Be reflective. Think about what YOU want to know when you research an event in history. Now, think about how you can be that same resource for future historians.”
The pandemic journal project consists of daily journal entries for the students as a way for them to think like historians and record information in the moment. In order to remember general and detailed feelings during the pandemic, students record their reflections, observations, and the ways in which their day-to-day activities have been altered. Some students are handwriting their journals, while others are expressing themselves through artwork and video posts (vlogs). Trinity High School is striving to help students find the silver lining in a most challenging situation. Mrs. Klein hopes to create a special project that her students will never forget. Not only will her current students gain a positive experience from their journaling and have personal documentation of their experiences, but they will be paying it forward to future students who will have the ability to read and see these journals for generations to come.
One student has chosen to find ways to help her community and decided to begin volunteering at the local food pantry in her neighborhood. She has noticed that the economic impact of COVID-19 has created an increasing economic crisis, leaving some with no jobs and not enough money to support their families. Celeste Ortiz, Trinity Class of 2021, noted in her daily journal, “Since many people have been required by state mandate to not attend work, they are not earning money and since they are not earning money and no one is certain how long the quarantine will last, many people are relying on food pantries and assistance from other groups. It was a nice experience and I am thankful for the opportunity to be able to help those in need during this time.”
