How COVID-19 Changed Lives - Voices of Children
Being a school student can sometimes be challenging, but the COVID-19 pandemic has made getting an education, and life in general, even more difficult for young people in Georgia. With schools closed, lessons are being held remotely. All sports, school activities, and events have been cancelled. Friendships and relationships have been transported…, Mate Dvalishvili, 15 years old, Kutaisi, The COVID-19 pandemic has radically changed my life. When I used to go to school, by the end of the day I would be exhausted – mentally as well as physically – and as a result, I did not have trouble falling asleep. Now, I don’t get tired enough during the day, so I can’t sleep at night, and I wake up late in the morning. That’s why I am sometimes…, Keta Tkhilaishvili, 10 years old, Batumi, My life has changed completely since my school was closed. Before, I spent most of the day at school with my classmates. Now, this is my free time. When I went to school, my schedule was really full. I got up early, prepared for school, and I also had extra classes like German, chess, circle dancing, and so on. Now my schedule is organized…, Sandro Turabelidze, 11 years old, Village Jimastaro, Imereti, During the pandemic I had to switch to distance or online school. I don’t find learning online difficult, it is easy. Before the class is over, teachers give us an assignment, we do the homework, take a photo of the exercise book, and send it to the teacher. During the next lesson the teacher tests our knowledge. When I have free time, I play with…, Elene Iashvili, 11 years old, Kvitiri, I live in the village of Kvitiri and I go to the Kutaisi Chess school. I had great plans this year. I was so excited to participate in the Georgia, Poti, Racha, and Tkibuli chess tournaments. Traveling around the country during tournaments is so much fun. We would go to the sea to relax after the game in Poti, and we would cozy up and enjoy the…, Luka Turabelidze, 10 years old, I am in the fourth grade and have been studying online for 2 months now. Online learning is not hard at all. I spend my free time riding my bicycle, and playing with my ball. I am lucky to have a yard, we don’t have to stay inside the house all the time. But, we don’t visit others and no one comes to visit us. That is why I am a bit bored. Also, I…, Nana Samkharadze, mother of Tekla and Lile Machavariani, Tekla and Lile are having a good a time as possible during the pandemic. We try to keep up with their education – they are 4 and 5 years old – and we are teaching their age-specific skills as much as we can. We learn letters, numbers, addition and subtraction, and most of the time we play. We come up with different things. The girls have even made…, Giorgi Kapchelashvili, 17 years old, Kutaisi, The recent changes have affected me very deeply. Staying at home for such a long time is bad for one’s health. Most of the time I am on the computer. I miss real life communication with others a lot. Before, I woke up at 8 a.m., now I wake up in the afternoon. I play on my phone while still in bed. Next, I have “breakfast” and again – telephone.…, Amiko Turabelidze, 12 years old, I love TV school programmes, and I watch them often. I personally like distance learning very much, because I have more free time. Now, I can spend more time riding my bike, drawing, and listening to music. I also help my grandfather in the vineyard. I communicate with friends on the Internet, but we cannot see one another and talk. I hope…, Nika Khelaia, 13 years old, Initially, I was afraid that online classes would be difficult, but it doesn’t seem as hard as I expected. In a way, it’s even easy. Currently, anatomy is the most interesting subject for me, because I am going to become a doctor, specifically, a surgeon. I usually take part in a lot of competitions, and I hope to be able to participate again…
Georgia
