Summary

One of a series of photographs which record Carla Pascoe-Leahy and her family at home during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Carla's two daughters, aged five and seven, were home-schooled during March, April and May, and these images depict some of the way in which the home environment was adapted to allow for home schooling to take place. The five-year-old is shown doing her Prep schoolwork at the kitchen table, while the seven-year-old is shown doing her Grade Two schoolwork at a camping table set up in the lounge room. The family also moved two bookcases to the lounge room which they filled with stationery, books and craft materials.

Carla and her husband were also working from home during this period. Carla works as an academic historian at the University of Melbourne and her husband is a bureaucrat. Carla had to convert their second lounge room into a temporary study by buying an adjustable desk and making do by propping up the computer monitor on large books. During this time, Carla and her husband took it in turns to home school their children and complete their paid work from home. Carla worked from 6-11am every morning while her husband got the kids up, got them ready for the day and started home school. Then they would swap roles, with Carla's husband commencing his paid work and Carla taking over home schooling and child minding.

The family also took up some new hobbies and past times during the shutdown period. One of their family friends gifted them a box of craft materials and Carla and Sofia started finger knitting. The family planted extra vegetable and herbs at home. They also experimented with other forms of home food production including making kombucha, sourdough bread and sauerkraut. These photos offer a snapshot of the ways in which one family's home spaces, daily schedules and leisure activities were transformed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The photographs were taken by Museums Victoria photographer Jon Augier, part of a project to document the experiences of Victorians during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Description of Content

Detail of hands of a young girl doing finger knitting on a couch.

Physical Description

Born Digital Image.

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