Remote learning Journey

Week 1
Planning was rather complicated and some subjects not engaging
I had the idea to create a Celebration slide for students to see what others are doing as well as a model/ semi exemplar for those students who hadn't done much or any mahi to have some sense of direction of what others were doing.
Celebration of the Learning Week 1

Week 2/3 

Introducing Maths by the maths teacher and students to join their Math Google Classroom

Screencastify to connect for Maths first so we are all consistent then when teachers are happy with the tool, we are to use it for all slides
Celebration of the Learning Week 2
Parent feedback letter sent individually for their  comments put into a Google Sheet to feedforward on.

Thank you very much for supporting our online learning programme. We would appreciate any feedback you might like to give us in regards to whether there is too much or too little, or if any more support is needed. Please forward any feedback by emailing me.

Again, thank you for your continued support,

Nga mihi

Megan Akkerman

Google Sheet with parent responses

A lot of time is spent problem solving and what we think is our next step is to have a Google Meet with our students next week to connect as that seems to be what is missing.
INtroduce Sunshine books

Sunshine books New resource. I have set up your passwords and have uploaded the user manual. You may wish to use
this for some of your students. 

Week 4 adaptions to home  learning after listening to parent feedback it became obvious that this is what is missing
Google Meet for connecting with students. The safe way so they can't get into Meet earlier than the time set up by the teacher

The following link is a good video. I think! I will be trialling it

https://youtu.be/CVCazmHBfac

Here's how to create a Google Meet with restrictions so that the students can't join the meeting early or try to join after the teacher has left.

The meeting must be created via the Google Meet site and using the 'nickname' function (not through calendar).

Follow these steps:

1. Share the meeting details with the students via Google Classroom or email e.g. You have been invited to a meeting on Monday 4 May at 9am with Mr Mills. You will need to enter the nickname 'Millsmeeting' in the box.
2. When you are ready to start your meeting, go to Google Meet and just enter your chosen nickname into the box (see below) and the meeting will start. You will be the host and the students cannot join until you have joined.
3. When the meeting has finished, just make sure everyone has left before you leave. 
4. It is recommended to use the same nickname for every meeting you host just for convenience e.g. AkkermanYear5. Every time the teacher joins a meeting, it generates a new hyperlink so students can't join without permission (even though they know the nickname).

I hope this is useful. Let me know if you have any issues. It's a great function because it only works with users who are in our school Google account e.g. students and teachers. I am happy to create a generic instruction message for the students that you could share with them for next Monday's meetings.

Week 4/5 Hattie Distant Learning

Some takeaways for me and things to consider and adapt and also encouraging as we are making changes as we go through this journey which adhere to the advise given by Hattie.

Holidays for recharging the batteries

On parenting

Help parents see their role as creating routines for learning and allowing their children to not know: Tell

them that there is no point having their kids learn stuff they already know, not knowing is a sign of

readiness and excitement of learning. Create opportunities for teacher-student and student-student

interaction.

But keep in mind that there is a work balance not only for students but also for teachers. Deliver mini-

classes using social media, make them clear, and provide oodles of opportunities for feedback. Make it

skill-based and provide exciting ways to practice, and not just project-based which can (but does not

need to) lead to busy work with little learning. Worry more about subjects that parents are least likely to

be able to help with, like math and science, and encourage kids and parents to read, read, read and also

talk about their reading, so the story is important, the vocabulary is stretched, and then simultaneously

keep teaching the skills of reading to make reading pleasurable.

What it should look like content

Optimize the social interaction aspects (we do not want to be talked at, but learn with)

● Check for understanding (listen to the feedback from the students about their learning even

more when you do not have the usual cues of the classrooms

● Make sure there is a balance between the precious knowledge and the deep thinking (too often

online favors the former over the latter)

Gorgeous appreciation from a student

Hello Aroha Teachers , just wanted to Email all of you guys to say Thank You soooo much for all the hard work you have been doing to keep our learning up at home during this pandemic, all of you are amazing role models to all the kids, especially the year sixes as this is our last year, and an interesting one it has become, Thank You and keep it up, and we will catch up later in the coming weeks, MISS YOU ALL!!!

Loi

What if our children are ahead?

Interesting words to answer the worry from parents who think their children might be left behind.

A message sent by a UK Primary to their parents:

If they cancel the rest of the school year, students would miss approx 13 weeks of school. Many people are concerned about students falling behind because of this. Yes, they may fall behind when it comes to classroom education...but fall behind whom?

BUT WHAT IF ....

What if instead of falling “behind", this group of kids are ADVANCED because of this? Hear me out.

What if they have more empathy, they enjoy family connection, they can be more creative and entertain themselves, they love to read, they love to express themselves in writing.

What if they enjoy the simple things, like their own garden and sitting near a window in the quiet.

What if they notice the birds and the dates the different flowers emerge, and the calming renewal of a gentle rain shower?

What if this generation are the ones to learn to cook, organize their space, do their laundry, and keep a well run home?

What is they learn to ride a bike, play a board game, do simple crafts, learn to bake, climb a tree, play without a screen?

What if they learn to Understand the value of money, what’s important and to live with less?

What if they learn to plan shopping trips and meals at home.

What if they learn the value of eating together as a family and finding the good to share in the small delights of the everyday?

What if they learn to just be, to be more resilient, to be content ?

What if they are the ones to place great value on our teachers and educational professionals, librarians, public servants and the previously invisible essential support workers like truck drivers, grocers, logistics, and health care workers and their supporting staff, just to name a few of the millions taking care of us right now while we are sheltered in place?

What if among these children, a great leader emerges who had the benefit of a slower pace and a simpler life to truly learn what really matters in this life?

What if they are AHEAD?