Remote Learning

Click here to read Lockdown 3 information and guidance given parents – 7th January 2021.

Thank you to those parents who completed our technology and support survey. The survey was completed by approximately two thirds of our families and the results show:

  • Almost all pupils’ homes have a broadband connection. Those that don’t, still have some form of internet connection but use will be limited.
  • Mainly devices are shared in households with just a third of pupils having sole access. There is only a very small proportion of pupils who have no access to devices at all.
  • Almost all pupils (with or without support) will be able to submit work to their ClassDojo Portfolio.
  • The majority of pupils will have support with home learning but just over a third of pupils will have limited or no support as their parents will be working.

The survey results do not throw up any surprises and, based on discussions with individual parents particularly during the previous lockdown, we are mindful of the challenges with remote learning. The government has set out their expectations for remote learning for any future partial or full school closures. Our previous provision was very close to this new, higher expectation but we have made enhancements to take into account the challenges faced by parents. This is because remote learning can only be effective with support for pupils at both ends – school and home. We also need all pupils to take part in remote learning to provide continuity of learning, including when pupils return to school. While we cannot meet every challenge that parents will face, here are some of the things that we have worked on in particular:

  • More videos to explain learning and provide instructions to pupils – we will continue to use quality videos, from WhiteRose Maths and Oak National Academy for example, but teachers will also be recording some short videos and posting these on ClassDojo. Bearing in mind that most pupils share devices and a proportion have limited adult support, videos are more accessible than live streamed lessons and provide greater flexibility for parents to decide a timetable that can work around the situation at home.
  • Quality printed materials for all pupils – we have invested in published CGP booklets for English and Mathematics. These will be used for homework and remote learning if necessary. We are using printed maths booklets in school and these will be sent home for continued use alongside the maths videos in the event of a closure. Pupils will also have their home learning exercise book and we hope that printing will rarely be necessary. In terms of any other resources that may be needed, we’ll keep these to the minimum and stick to those that are typically found at home.
  • In addition to the printed materials, we will use our subscriptions with Purple Mash, Readiwriter, MyMaths, Timetables Rockstars and Accelerated Reader to set purposeful tasks that teachers can check.
  • More focussed feedback on completed work submitted to the ClassDojo portfolio – as almost all pupils can submit work, we hope to use this more effectively to guide pupils to improve their work or to learn from their mistakes in the work that has been set.
  • More specifically adapted lesson activities for pupils with special educational needs where necessary – your child’s teacher will send these separately to the instructions for the class in general and may also send home an adapted home learning pack. These pupils in KS2 also have a subscription to Nessy which is an online teaching programme to support pupils further in specific areas.
  • Sharply focused learning tasks and a more focused programme of learning overall – each day we will set the specific learning and tasks to be completed. We will often have a ‘go deeper’ extension task for pupils that grasp the learning quickly but we won’t suggest lots of other tasks which might make it difficult for parents to work out what is necessary. The tasks we set will not be too open ended or complex that they rely heavily on parental support; as a rule, teachers will expect KS2 pupils to be able to check their own work from answers given. We know that pupils and parents found writing tasks very challenging during the lockdown so we will focus more on comprehension, grammar and spelling tasks for English and save more complex writing activities for when pupils are back in school.

Pupils have taken home their home learning pack of printed booklets. These are being used for general homework (as set by the class teacher) and, in the event of any isolation periods or a lockdown, remote learning. The contents of the home learning pack should be kept safe at home and any task completed in them should be to the same standard of presentation we expect in school. Below, we have provided a detailed document of the expectations for homework and remote learning.

Fingers crossed that we only ever use the home learning pack for general homework but at least we will be well prepared should remote learning be necessary.

Thank you for your continued support.

Mrs Stylianides

Provision and Expectations for General Homework

Provision and Expectations for Remote Learning

ClassDojo is our main platform for sharing work and activities. All parents are connected and they can comment on posts or message teachers if they need further guidance. All pupils have their own portfolio to submit work on ClassDojo. Older pupils can have their own account to do this themselves as well as check what work has been set. Parents can submit work for younger pupils. Uploading to portfolios enables teachers to approve, check and provide helpful feedback. For more information, here is a link to the ClassDojo Help Desk for Parents.

Internet Safety – During this crisis, a lot of children are going to be online far more than they have ever been. Here are some internet safety links which might parents might find helpful:

 

Everyone can grow in a Greenfield!