1. Create a centralized location for communication
- Maintain a communication “hub” where you can update information for your students.
- Send weekly updates to your class. Weekly updates should include the schedule of assignments, instructions for completing and submitting work, reminders, and teacher contact information and availability.
2. Think “flipped classroom” model
Send students resources such as texts, videos, podcasts, etc., to provide background knowledge that they can apply in subsequent learning activities like group or one-on-one discussions.
3. Create tutorials and short lesson
Record yourself delivering a lesson that can be shared with your students via URL or an email attachment. This will maintain your “presence” and to engage your students without having to get everyone in the same virtual room at the same time.
4. Encourage student collaboration and discourse
Weekly lesson plans should include opportunities for students to respond to questions in a discussion board format to encourage collaboration and idea-sharing.
5. Offer office hours
- Allot 1-2 hours each day and make yourself available, either in a web conferencing room or by phone, to students
- Include your office hours in your email signature and on the communication “hub” so students are aware of your availability each day.
6. Provide students with individual support and feedback
- Reach out to the students who need additional support in their learning and provide personalized, targeted instruction over the phone or through web conferencing.
7. Design opportunities for hands-on learning
- Consider the types of projects students can complete in their homes or within their communities that align to and enhance what they are learning in various content areas.
8. Offer enrichment opportunities
- Provide virtual enrichment opportunities for students such as puzzles, educational games, science experiments, and art projects. Also consider opportunities to encourage students to move and be active
9. Assess student learning
- Students can submit assessments using online tools, or teachers can send assessments to students via email attachment to be completed and emailed back.
- Teachers should provide timely, specific, and instructionally focused feedback.
10. Provide self-assessment opportunities
- Students can reflect on their learning and performance, set goals, and create action plans. Self-assessment strategies include student reflections, rubrics, graphic organizers, oral assessments, and individual targets.
For further reading you may refer to:
Coronavirus and Teaching from Home: Ten Ways to Engage and Instruct Students Remotely by Karen Roper (https://www.connectionsacademy.com/news/releases/coronavirus-and-teaching-from-home-ten-ways-to-engage-remotely)
