If I am to introduce what is in my everyday bag, it would be quite boring. I keep my everyday bag to only carrying minimal items, so if I have to show it, it would only be a set of keys, a cellphone, and a wallet. Instead, I’ve put together a group of daily items that I use on hours on end every day since I am currently working from home. I shall call this “What’s in my office bag?” instead.
The items shown in the picture are things I use to teach online, and all of them connect with text or technology, or both. I am currently teaching grades 1/2 online, so I am constantly thinking of ways to keep my students engaged. Learning online is already out of the ordinary for young children, so I try my best to motivate and keep them involved as much as possible. The main item in the picture is the laptop. The laptop is my connection and communication to the outside community. It also functions as my online classroom, my teaching material, and many more. I spend an enormous amount of time on my laptop each day to prepare materials for my class. I would create my own activities, worksheets, and spend many hours looking over students’ work. Using my laptop, I can grade my students’ work while giving them constructive feedback where necessary. During our video sessions, we “see” and interact with each other. At the same time, we communicate, share read aloud, and “play” games together. Unfortunately, my work doesn’t end right at 3 pm. This brings me to my next item.
My cellphone is my communication and research tool. My cellphone serves the purpose of both leisure and working tool. I use it to scroll and communicate through my own social media platforms. I also use it to search for teaching inspirations and responding to parent emails and troubleshooting for parents late at night. Work aside, my cellphone is also a documentation tool. I take lots of pictures of interesting things spotted during my nature walks that inspires future lessons. The two cats in the picture are my cats who are also great writing inspiration for my students. By the way, the orange cat is named Chewy and the black and white cat is named Bob. Together, they are Chew-Bob-Cats … get it?
One of the non-technological tools is the pink llama notebook. This notebook is to keep track of what students say during class. It could be notes of what they are interested in, what they wonder, the proposals for future learning and activities they’d like to do. This notebook also serves the purpose of date stamping and documenting what we’ve done up to this point.
Another non-technological tool is whiteboard and markers. These are the tools I use in class when I teach literacy and math. I use various marker colours to enhance the learning experience, as younger children need more colourful visuals. Text is not limited to just alphabetical words. I often draw images and symbols on this whiteboard to help students understand the material better.
Final two items are glasses and earbuds. During this pandemic, my partner and I have to learn to co-exist alongside two cats while working in a small apartment. Earbuds are essential when comes to minimizing noise when we’re working simultaneously. This little tool saves my partner’s sanity by not having to hear children yell on occasion when he’s getting his work done. The reading glasses serve as another essential tool for me to be able to function properly when I need to use my laptop and cellphone. The glasses allow me to read and write!
Looking back 15-25 years ago, this “Office Bag” would be a giant, bulky bag! The computers back then were big and heavy. Cellphones, on the other hand, were actually smaller than today. If an archaeologist digs up this bag in the near future, there is no doubt in mind that these were office items.
This “Office Bag” does not intrude my privacy, but it may be saving you from boredom. I spend many hours over the week, Monday-Sunday, using the items in the picture. Aside from these great technological inventions, there is really nothing much to show other than my cats! Anyways, this is my “What’s in my office bag?” post.