virtual learning

Remote Learning – Preview the Day

/ Kristen Foley / Leave a comment

If you preview your plan for the synchronous day, students will have fewer questions and feel more comfortable. But keep it simple. Kids just want to know the gist. This is the Google Slide I present during our morning meeting. From 9:00-9:15 I greet the students, share reminders, do check-ins, integrate digital citizenship, and present our social-emotional curriculum. As you know, I color code everything, so on this agenda page math is outlined in blue, reading is green, and writing is yellow just like their physical materials and my lesson slides. I think the colors help student categorize and organize. The stars represent our 10-minute breaks. Our schedule is consistent every day, though there is an occassional special event that requires some adjustments. Simple and consistent is key, but flexibility is definiitely present.

Remote Learning – Daily Agenda

/ Kristen Foley / Leave a comment

Keep your daily agenda simple and consistent, if possible. Having regular start and end times will be essential as many remote students will be independent in remembering and returning for sessions. Suggest they set an alarm or reminder on a phone, kitchen timer, or virtual assistant (Alexa, Siri) to be on time for afternoon sessions.

For my students, I laminated this chart, which is a general outline of our consistent daily schedule. Just before we ended our morning learning session, I would remind students if they needed to return for afternoon groups. They would use a dry-erase marker to circle reading 1:30-2:00 or math 2:00-2:30. It also had a short list of indepdent work with checkboxes. I liked that this allowed students to be independent and that it wasn’t digital so special grown-ups would be able to take a quick look at it to be informed about PM groups and work completion. At end end of the day, students could wipe it clean with a microfiber cloth I provided (or a tissue) and be ready for the next school day.

Remote Learning – Web Browser Tabs

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A technology device works its best when the fewest amount of applications are running. So students who have a dozen websites open (some of which may be games or videos that strain the computer and pose possible distractions during instruction) could experience issues with their video call. Explain the importance of minimizing open applications. In my remote classroom, we use Google Chrome and students start the day with just our district Symbaloo and Google Classroom tabs. They are reminded to X out of any others such as the tab that launched our Zoom meeting. As our morning progresses, additional pages may be needed. But as we finish with those websites, students are instructed to close them.

To avoid the accidental closure of a needed tab, I teach students how to pin and bookmark sites as well as the difference in their uses. By right clicking on a website tab, the Pin option (push pin icon) keeps the site open. In fact, it removes the X completely. In order to close it now, the user must right click on the tab again and select Unpin to view the X. I highly encourage pinning a website when students are taking an assessment. Although some tasks may be autosaved and allow the student to pick up where they left off, pinning will help you avoid those scares. The Bookmark option (star icon) is used to collect often used sites in a list. Those appear in a bar along the top of your browser and additional ones can be located by clicking on the >> at the end of the row. Users can rename bookmarked sites by right clicking and editing or rearrange them by clicking the title and dragging it to a new spot on the bar.

Remote Learning – Welcome & Prep

/ Kristen Foley / Leave a comment

Joining a virtual meeting always gives me a little bit of jitters. It’s the unknown. The awkward silence. The repeated directions. The waiting. It can be agitating. And I want to be calm, ready to learn when I join a meeting. While attending an online summer class, one instructor gave me a few ideas that I immediately knew I was going to use with my students. First, a template page with written welcome and directions. Second, a task to reflect on current feelings. Third, music. The name of the course was “Brain-based Learning,” go figure . . . she was using brain research from the moment we joined the call.

From day one, I put up a welcome page for students to see as they entered my meeting. I also had my Amazon Music “Mrs. Foley’s Playlist” on. Part of the reason for music is to give the brain something nice to listen to, but also it gave the kids an chance to check/adjust their sound. My page gave reminders about materials needed. In the chat I asked students to share a weekend highlight, describe how they are feeling in 2 words, set a daily goal, review a skill from a previous lesson (type a multiple of 9 fact with the product), etc.

This gave me time to take silent attendance and assist students with tech issues. The others weren’t bored or annoyed (hopefully) during this time. Instead, they were preparing their work space and selves for learning. Plus, it was a daily opportunity for community building because many times the chat questions were personal. The entire “welcome and prep” time is the five minutes before the official start time, so no time is lost, but A LOT of time is gained. We begin right at 9:00 (or 9:01) and have a smooth ride!