COVID-19 gave students a shock when school was moved to online for the rest of the year.

For many that was the point when they realized just how real this all was.

Now as months have passed, a big question on student's and parent's minds is what schools are going to do now?

College students are usually use to some online class format and while it will be a big change no matter what schools decide, they are most likely going to be able to adapt.

However, for people still in grade school this can be trickier.

Especially for elementary and middle school kids who are still figuring out their learning styles and are not yet use to being accountable for turning things in on their own.

My younger brother, who is in middle school, had 3 options to choose from: he could go to in person instruction for one week and then online instruction for two weeks at a time, he could do it all totally online, or he could enroll in a homeschooling program.

Now these are not the only options that schools around the nation have considered I am sure, but I don't see these options or any others for that matter being able to make everyone happy.

If kids are totally in online classes, that can be a hard transition. For kids who really need one-on-one instruction and are visual learners this can prove to be especially difficult. Not to mention that this option will be hard for younger kids since they will need to keep themselves accountable. Plus, socialization is super important for younger kids and even older kids, so depression may sweep over some students who are stuck at home alone.

On the other hand the option of two weeks online and one week in person proves to have weaknesses as well. The main concern being that there is a chance of the virus spreading with kids and facility being in a building together. The two weeks at home of course is designed to allow for the symptoms to arise in that time period so parents will know if they need to not send their kids to school for the in person instruction. However, this simply can't be fool proof as some kids are sure to not show symptoms and who knows what could happen when they go to school. Kids touch their face often and put their hands in their mouth, so the spreading of the virus could happen easily. Plus with older teachers, there is the fear that they could get the virus transmitted to them this way.

While both options do have positives, such as the online option offering more safety and the hybrid option offering socialization in a time where kids are getting lonely, there is one big negative that affects both of them. That is the question of who is supposed to watch the kids?

Parents have to work and some of the children in school are way too young to be home alone, much less doing class online, such as first graders. Parents can not be there all day monitoring their kids and making sure that they are doing their work. For most families it is just not a feasible option, even if every couple of weeks kids are physically in school.

So it feels that either way there is no right answer. Every kid and situation is different. Schools and governments are giving parents options at least and trying to accommodate as many people as possible in such uncertain times.

I fear that some kids are going to be behind in school because they will have trouble understanding material online compared to if they were in person and I am sure that many parents feel the same way. But as with everything during this pandemic it seems all we can do is wait and see what the future holds, even if the uncertainty is difficult to deal with.