BIDDEFORD — On Friday, March 13,  they were wrapping up classes after the usual school week — and by Tuesday,  March 17, teachers at St. James School were engaging their students online.

Everybody had to get into the groove with a new way of learning and a new way of teaching.

Nearly two months in, the model used by St. James School, the parochial school that instructs 158 children from Pre-K through grade eight is working, say parents, teachers and the school principal. And while students can’t chat with their friends on the playground at recess — they see each other every day, and they see and interact with their teachers every day, in their online digital classrooms.

“We’re so blessed that St. James is doing online, remote distance learning,” said parent and St. James School Board member Sarah Barrs. “The kids are in school 9 am. to 1 p.m., in front of their teachers.”

Barrs, an estate planning attorney known as Sarah Neault to her clients, is also working remotely these days. She and her husband Chad have three children at St. James. Addison is in fourth grade, Austin in second, and Andrew is in first grade. Their fourth child, three-year-old Andrea, makes an occasional “guest appearance,” in her siblings’ classes, her mother said.

“The kids are absolutely learning — they know what to expect, they log in, have literacy and do writing assignments, they turn in their work, and there are small individualized math groups,” said Barrs. “The teachers are treating (online learning) like a classroom.”

Principal Nancy Naimey said staff began talking about distance learning back in February, when it seemed like there would come a time when it would be instituted, given the march of COVID-19 across the country.

“Most teachers had never done this before,” she said. So they worked it out, starting with a trial subscription to Zoom, the online meeting and webinar program, and began hosting meetings with each other, for practice.

Then, in mid-March, distance learning began; it will continue through the end of the school year.

Most younger students are “on” in all classes, unless they’re completing an assignment on their own, said Naimey. The older students log on and off from class to class — sort of like being in the building, walking from classroom to classroom.

Not only are students at home, teachers are as well.

“As a 46-year veteran teacher, I never imagined that I would be teaching this way,” said grade three teacher Estelle Beauchesne. “It is a totally different mindset, and not what we are accustomed to.”

Beauchesne said she tries to keep her teaching as normal as possible.

“We still start our day with prayer, flag salute, and a patriotic song,” she said. “Students still get art, gym, music, STREAM, and are able to attend the virtual Masses. (Students) usually show up with smiling faces and are given a few minutes to socialize with their classmates. Then we get to work. It has not been easy for them but they have been super in trying their best to adapt.”

Beauchesne said she’s had 100 percent attendance, and Naimey said overall, attendance has been “super good.”

Two of Michelle and Lee Cote’s boys, Noah, in grade three and Jonah, in kindergarten, attend St. James.

“My husband and I felt that Saint James School adapted to the swift change to online learning faster than we could have imagined,” said Michelle. “Distance learning has been a major adjustment for our kids. From daily interactions with their friends to weekend sports and activities and large groups, this has been a big shift. But they — along with their classmates — have adapted remarkably well. It’s hard to fully grasp the magnitude of this crisis as adults, let alone young children. I’m very proud of how all these kids have adapted!”

Second-grade teacher Marcy Fournier said the ability to see her students every day is most rewarding.

“We are able to stay connected,” said Fournier. “As a class, when it’s someone’s birthday, we all sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to them!”

Jamie White, who teaches middle school at St. James and is the grade eight homeroom teacher, said online teaching goes at a slower pace. She’s adjusted and believes her students have as well, but she worries about them — whether they truly understanding what is being taught, and how they’re coping with the pandemic. The students must worry, she said, if their parents are essential workers.

“As teachers we respond to body language in our classrooms,” said White. “Teachers learn to interpret students’ body language to determine levels of comprehension, interest, boredom, etc. It is difficult to do this with 15 little conference call windows looking at you.”

She said parents, grandparents, and guardians are all on the front lines of distance learning, and deserve a lot of thanks.

“They have had to learn how to log their young children into video conferences, google classroom, email pictures of completed work and check email daily for new messages from teachers,” she said.

As the end of the school year approaches, Naimey said the school is looking at ways to celebrate the eighth-grade students who will be completing their St. James education and moving on to public high school.

As for distance learning, Naimey said teachers have made it work, and she’s heard positive feedback from parents.

“I’m so proud of my teachers, they’ve worked really hard,” she said. “I feel like they’ve done a remarkable job.”

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