With the ever-growing number of Coronavirus cases across the world, social distancing is becoming more important every day. According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, as of March 26 there are 126 positive cases in Kansas and Douglas County has mandated a stay-at-home order. Although there is no vaccine for the coronavirus yet, there are important steps people can take to slow the spread of the disease: the main one being social distancing.

“I spent 10 years in public health administration and I studied some pretty bad diseases,” said Baldwin City resident Erin Scraper, who worked in clinic operations with doctors to track people’s health. “So social distancing, even though it sucks, is so important for us.”

Along with working in public health, Scraper is also the parent of two 14 and 10-year old daughters who have been social distancing since March 14. They have filled their time with activities to occupy them while they are cooped up at home.

“The girls each made schedules,” Scraper said. “We have been doing lots of art, online games and movies.”

Social distancing has affected almost every aspect of our lives. Kansas students and teachers’ worlds were changed on March 17 when Governor Laura Kelly decided to close school buildings for the remainder of the year due to the need to socially distance to prevent the spread of Coronavirus.

“This was an important step [to stop the spread of the virus], because we are already witnessing the speed at which this virus is spreading without schools in session,” BHS English teacher Hailey Schoendaller said. “If we were in school every day, these numbers would be much higher.”

Schoendaller is adjusting the schedule and content of her classes to fit the new methods that she can teach with. Her composition classes have already learned the skills needed to write their final research paper, so they will just have to demonstrate those skills in writing the paper from home. For her other classes, she will have to narrow the content that is being focused in order to complete the required content before the end of the year.

“I will try to pick just 4-5 standards or essential skills to focus on, and use one novel for each of those classes as the vehicle for delivery,” Schoendaller said. “My students will have assigned daily readings for their respective novels and weekly assignments or discussion questions.”

It has also been difficult for students to handle this shift in schooling. It is not really known what lies ahead in school. They will have to learn a new way to do assignments and navigate the rest of the school year. 

“It’s been really hard to not have a structured schedule,” senior Zsofia Nemeth said. “Before all of this, I knew exactly what I was preparing for, what to focus on, and how to spend my time, but now I have no clue what’s in store for the rest of the year.”

Even though she doesn’t know what lies ahead, Nemeth does know it is important for her to stay home. She is at risk for getting seriously ill if she contracted the virus, so she has been socially isolating for about two weeks now.

“I’m chronically ill, and it’s really important for me to be inside as much as I can,” Nemeth said. “Most of the time I’m even limited to my room. I think it’s really important for all of us to take this virus seriously and lay low so things will go back to normal.”