Coffee Chats: English teacher connects with students in quarantine through weekly meetings via Zoom

The first thing English teacher Amy Andersen wanted to do after learning about school’s cancellation was reach out to her students. Her inspiration? Coffee. 

To her students, Andersen’s trademark is always having her Audrey Hepburn mug in hand, filled to the brim with coffee. Hoping to bring familiarity to their now foreign classroom setting while looking to reconnect with her students, Andersen couldn’t think of a better name for their Zoom calls than “coffee chats.”

“I saw a coffee chat as a good draw [since] coffee and chatting go well together and provided a good avenue for the question of the day that we enjoy in our English classes,” Andersen said.

Every Monday, Andersen hosts two coffee chats for her students, one at 10:30 a.m. and the other at 2 p.m. The coffee chats serve as a time for Andersen to catch up with her students and bring positivity during this global crisis.

During the coffee chats, discussion revolves around an old classroom ritual: the daily roll call question. While students share a story about an object in their room or discuss what celebrity they’d like to spend quarantine with, they also catch up on college decisions and gush when Andersen’s golden retrievers make an appearance on Zoom.

“I think something we’re all missing right now is connection,” Andersen said. “It’s such an important part of being a school community and to have meaningful relationships. Not just to do the ‘work’ work of school, but to make time for the things that took place during passing periods or down moments.”

Senior and regular coffee chat attendee Jane Sonnichsen likes how it’s less of an academic talk and more of a check-in-on-life talk — something desperately needed during this time.

“[Andersen’s] always happy to see us,” Sonnichsen said. “It’s kind of refreshing to have a teacher who cares about what you’re doing, not just logging on for assignments and stuff.”

Even though attendance is only around 10 students per meeting, their half-hour coffee chats have become a staple for Andersen’s English students during quarantine.

While the name “coffee chat” is just a title, when Andersen asks if everyone has their coffee with them, they all hold up a drink — even if it’s not coffee.

“I enjoy being able to see everyone again, because, you know, it gets kind of lonely in quarantine,” Sonnichsen said. “You can call your friends and talk to them but that’s mostly kind of a one-on-one thing. So for me, I’ve really enjoyed seeing everyone in the group and being able to laugh and talk with Mrs. Anderen. To me it kind of feels like being in the classroom again, which I really miss.”