High school band members zip into pods to stay socially distant amid coronavirus pandemic
WENATCHEE, Wash. (KGO) -- Wenatchee High School finding a socially distanced solution to get the band back together.
"I have space and I can play. And I can see the conductor and the drum major. It's a nice space to just be there. Without the mask!"
Easy for a clarinet player like Gonzalez to say, as the tuba is less comfortable.
These so called pods are set up in the band and choir rooms with individual students getting inside, zipping themselves in, and then removing their masks to play their instruments or sing.
It's a welcome change after spending an entire semester in online band and choir classes.
"Not super fun to see black boxes with a name instead of your choirmates that you love so much," Libby Borst said of their Zoom meetings.
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Though, the pods have come with some growing pains, but for some students it's worth it!
"I definitely got my hair stuck in the zipper," said Borst. "It definitely looks silly, but if you're actually experiencing that, it's so liberating that we get to create. Because I would be so sad if we didn't get to do choir."
And beyond the numerous academic and behavioral benefits of arts programs in high schools, getting to sing or play with your peers is the best part of so many students' day.
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Students reflected on what it felt like to finally be able to sing together as a group again.
"It was so nice," said Borst. "I'm really grateful for our staff, especially our music teachers. They made sure it was okay by the school district, by the CDC, and I'm really grateful that they came up with something that we get to do to sing."
