We begin our story about a quarter ‘til one on Monday, October 11, with some technical difficulties. My first-day attempting online teaching was daunting, but my husband does this for a living, so he set me all up.
Earlier in the month, my husband, Kevin, and I purchased a desk-top stand for my laptop. He retrieved an extra monitor, ordered a wireless keyboard and mouse, a headset, a hub for other peripherals, and a mouse pad. We found some inexpensive phone holders, including a selfie light ring. With my new desk in place to hold all this stuff, I worked to prepare for my first day of class.
Back to Monday. After Kevin took care of technical difficulties on my end, the Haitians had some of their own. Class started twenty minutes late.
Wow! Online teaching was more challenging than I realized. Not having taught music class in twenty-plus years, I was nervous. Add to the nerves teaching with an interpreter for over two hours. How exhausting; talk about brain overload. Four days later, and my brain still feels fried—cue Monty Python, “My brain hurts.” The class went well, and they learned an enormous amount about music while I learned to navigate online teaching.
Next Monday, after a quick recap, we’ll jump into another long session. If the internet is working in Haiti, I should have a solid two-and-a-half hours of teaching. There’s plenty of material to cover for weeks on end. I have about seven hours of class time left, so I shall give it my best shot.
The highlight of the day was hearing them sing “Amazing Grace” in French with beautiful harmonies.
Kaci Rigney 