Public school buildings and schoolyards were eerily quiet Monday. 

But while schools were closed, that didn’t mean students didn’t have class.

Altogether, about 375,000 students and parents logged in virtually on the first day of remote learning in two years, according to city officials. That was close to 80% of those expected to attend.

“Things have gone very well this morning,” Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels said at a morning briefing. “It was a smooth start to the day. Students were able to log into their virtual classroom quickly and get right into their school day.”

What You Need To Know

  • City officials said about 375,000 students logged in to remote learning, close to 80% of those with virtual classes

  • Some families reported glitches logging into Google Classroom, but the Department of Education said it worked closely with Google and eventually resolved any issues

  • In-person classes are set to resume Tuesday

City officials tried it out themselves, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani dropping in on a virtual fifth-grade class at PS 182, The Bilingual Bicultural School in Manhattan, reading to students from “The Snowy Day” by Ezra Jack Keats.

Mamdani said he decided against a traditional snow day because there’s little flexibility to add makeup days at the end of the school year, given the high number of school holidays.

“I did visit a classroom this morning remotely, alongside the chancellor, and reiterated my offer to students that they could pelt me in the face with a snowball,” he said. “They were very excited about that and asked for a time and place. I said, ‘You can find me anywhere in New York City.'”

Many parents and students did report problems logging in to Google Classroom, but the Department of Education called those “minor hiccups,” adding it worked closely with Google and eventually resolved any issues.

“Overall, very smooth,” Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, said. “There seems that we’re getting some reports about one of the Google Classroom, [which] was the only one with a little wrinkle in it.”

Meanwhile, the mayor said 8,000 workers were deployed to ensure schools were in good enough shape to reopen on Tuesday.