Mid-April brought a pretty momentous occasion: for the first time in over a year, Joe and William attended school in person. It’s been a long, strange year, and we are extremely fortunate in that we’ve been able to provide quiet, comfortable spaces for the kids to attend school remotely. But as good as the tools and technologies we have to stay connected virtually are, it’s still a wholly different experience to be able look your teacher in the eye and run around with your friends at recess.

Joe started on Monday, and he and Julie stopped to pick up his old friend Caitlin on the way to school. It’s her first year at UPA, and, on account of the pandemic, her first chance to meet many of her new classmates in person.

UPA has divided its in-person students into two cohorts, A and B, that will alternate weeks in school. Joe was originally in cohort B, but he requested a change to cohort A so he could attend at the same time as Caitlin and a few other friends. They’ve also staged the returns of different classes so that everyone doesn’t show up at once. As a result, the number of in-person students in his classes thus far has been pretty small: his P.E. class, which has more in-person students than most, has six people in his cohort. And Joe was the only in-person student in his cohort for his Spanish class. This will likely change next week, when the tenth graders return to campus.

In UPA’s hybrid approach, each teacher must teach to the in-person and remote students simultaneously, which unquestionably presents some challenges. Of course, the alternative, making some kids switch teachers two thirds of the way through the year, would probably be worse. Nevertheless, Joe reports that he feels good about the change, and he’s glad he decided to return.

William returned to class on Wednesday, but he was feeling a little bit nervous about being able to find his way to class—he’s only a first grader, after all—so we stopped by campus on Sunday to show him where he needs to go. Joe tagged along and entertained himself noting all the things that have changed in the three years since he left Booksin and good-naturedly bemoaning the fact that things were better in the good old days.

When Wednesday finally rolled around, I drove William to school—Julie is volunteering at UPA to help out with temperature checks and the rest of the check-in process—and he was greeted at the front gate by a yard monitor who knew him by name, even with his mask on. He hardly looked back at me as he marched off to class.

Like Joe, William reports that in-person school is a more or less unqualified success. He’s come home every day full of energy, and he’s brought back more than one skinned knee acquired as he chased (or was chased by) his friends on the playground.

As happy as he is to be back at school, and as gratifying as it is to see him reconnecting with his friends, it is a lot quieter around the house during the day. His desk in the living room (“Willville”, as he calls it) sits silent and empty. In-person school is clearly better for William, but I miss the sound of his voice and getting hugs during recess.

In the meantime, Julia remains content to finish out the school year in cohort C, having committed to sticking with remote learning through the end of the school year. I think she appreciates that there’s a bit less activity during school hours now that the boys are gone.

Gallery: Back to School (For Real)