Remote Learning

REMOTE LEARNING PROVISION JANUARY 2021

REMOTE EDUCATION PROVISION - INFORMATION FOR PARENTS

This information is intended to provide clarity and transparency to pupils and parents or carers about what to expect from remote education if local restrictions require entire cohorts (or bubbles) to remain at home.

For details of what to expect where individual pupils are self-isolating, please see the final section of this page.

THE REMOTE CURRICULUM - WHAT IS TAUGHT TO PUPILS AT HOME

A pupil’s first day or two of being educated remotely might look different from our standard approach, while we take all necessary actions to prepare for a longer period of remote teaching.

WHAT SHOULD MY CHILD EXPECT FROM IMMEDIATE REMOTE EDUCATION IN THE FIRST DAY OR TWO OF PUPILS SENT HOME?

For the first day that your child needs to access remote education you will find a day’s worth of work on their Google Classroom page. This will be mixture of activities for Maths, English and topic work which may include activities to complete at home and e-learning materials such as links to Oak Academy. Children will also have their reading book to read at home and access to Epic Reading and Oxford Owl reading materials.

FOLLOWING THE FIRST FEW DAY OF REMOTE EDUCATION, WILL MY CHILD BE TAUGHT BROADLY THE SAME CURRICULUM AS THEY WOULD IF THEY WERE IN SCHOOL?

Teaching staff will deliver the same curriculum remotely as they will for those children who remain in school, wherever it is possible to do so. They may need to make changes to some practical subjects. For instance, team games in PE would need to be changed to a more individual approach and in Art we would need to ensure the materials are likely to be found at home.

REMOTE TEACHING AND STUDY TIME EACH DAY

HOW LONG CAN I EXPECT WORK SET BY THE SCHOOL TO TAKE MY CHILD EACH DAY?

We expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) will take pupils broadly the following number of hours each day:

Reception, Year 1 and Year 2

3 hours per day

For younger children this is likely to include activities that are away from the computer such as reading and practical activities.

Year 3, Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6

4 hours per day

This will include reading, learning times tables and spellings from their reading record.

ACCESSING REMOTE EDUCATION

HOW WILL MY CHILD ACCESS ANY ONLINE REMOTE EDUCATION YOU ARE PROVIDING?

Your child will access the work set by their class teacher by logging onto their Google Classroom account. Reception children will also have access to Tapestry to upload work and communicate with school.

IF MY CHILD DOES NOT HAVE DIGITAL OR ONLINE ACCESS AT HOME, HOW WILL YOU SUPPORT THEM TO ACCESS REMOTE EDUCATION?

We recognise that some pupils may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those pupils to access remote education:

The school will endeavour to provide a laptop or an iPad for families who do not have access to learning devices at home. Priority will be given to those families who are in receipt of benefits related Free School Meals. Families are encouraged to telephone school if they wish to discuss their child’s needs.
The school does not expect parents to print any online learning resources. Children can work directly into books or onto paper using the questions and prompts from the online learning. Photographs of the work can then be uploaded to Google Classroom.
The school encourages parents to communicate regularly with them and let them know if they have any issues accessing the work remotely. Parents are able to request a paper pack of resources if the family is unable to access the online learning or would prefer paper-based learning. Please note that this work will be different to what is published online and is matched to the child’s needs.

HOW WILL MY CHILD BE TAUGHT REMOTELY?

We use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely:

Live teaching sessions via Google Classrooms.
Recorded teaching materials from Oak National Academy, BBC Bitesize and other educational sites.
Live story sessions for children across all year groups via Google Classrooms.
Worksheets and tasks uploaded onto Google Classrooms.
Access to Oxford Tree reading and Epic Reading to support reading.
Commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips or sequences.
Bespoke live lessons with the teacher to meet individual/group learning needs.

ENGAGEMENT AND FEEDBACK

WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS FOR MY CHILD'S ENGAGEMENT SND THE SUPPORT THAT WE AS PARENTS AND CARERS SHOULD PROVIDE AT HOME?

Children will be given a timetable on Google Classrooms that sets out expectations for the day.
We record our ‘live’ lessons and provide e-learning materials so parents can engage in a more flexible way if it is helpful to them. This means that learning can take place over a weekend etc. if that is preferred.
We use our ‘live’ sessions as well as asking pupils to return completed e-learning tasks in order to feedback to pupils and ensure we provide work that matches our pupils needs.
Teachers are available to contact at school should you need any advice on how best to support your child’s learning.

HOW WILL YOU CHECK WHETHER MY CHILD IS ENGAGING WITH THEIR WORK AND HOW WILL I BE INFORMED IF THERE ARE CONCERNS?

Teachers are expecting to see children during ‘live’ lessons and they will be checking for assignments/activities to be completed on a daily basis.
If a child is not engaging parents will receive a telephone call from school to see if we can add further support.

HOW WILL YOU ACCESS MY CHILD'S WORK AND PROGRESS?

Feedback can take many forms and may not always mean extensive written comments for individual children. For example, whole-class feedback or quizzes marked automatically via digital platforms are also valid and effective methods, amongst many others. Our approach to feeding back on pupil work is as follows:

Teachers provide feedback to pupils during ‘live’ sessions and use question and answer sessions to gauge a child’s understanding and address misconceptions in much the same way as they would do in school.
Classroom staff make phone calls (weekly) to check on children’s progress and to see if parents require any support helping their child with home learning.
Children’s work can be photographed and posted on Google Classroom or returned to school once the child returns for feedback.

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR PUPILS WITH PARTICULAR NEEDS

HOW WILL YOU WORK WITH ME TO HELP MY CHILD WHO NEEDS ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FROM ADULTS AT HOME TO ACCESS REMOTE EDUCATION?

We recognise that some pupils, for example some pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), may not be able to access remote education without support from adults at home. We acknowledge the difficulties this may place on families, and we will work with parents and carers to support those pupils in the following ways:

If your child is receiving extra support within school either because of special educational needs or a pastoral need, we will aim to continue this on line wherever possible. Teachers and teaching assistants will provide extra teaching sessions at a suitable time for you.
If this is not sufficient to support the family, the school will consider a range of other options including specialist external support or an invitation to attend school where this is deemed appropriate and the child is well enough to do so.

REMOTE EDUCATION FOR SELF-ISOLATING PUPILS

Where individual pupils need to self-isolate but the majority of their peer group remains in school, how remote education is provided will likely differ from the approach for whole groups. This is due to the challenges of teaching pupils both at home and in school.

IF MY CHILD IS NOT ON SCHOOL BECAUSE THEY ARE SELF-ISOLATING, HOW WILL THEIR REMOTE EDUCATION DIFFER FROM THE APPROACHES DESCRIBED ABOVE?

If your child is isolating but their class ‘bubble’ is not, the main difference will be no ‘live’ lessons. However, a range of assignments and e-learning will be provided alongside the means to message directly each child’s class teacher for support on Google Classrooms.

Remote Learning Information for Parents/Carers

GOOGLE CLASSROOMS - INFORMATION AND VIDEO

During the lockdown period school will continue to use Google Classroom as our remote learning platform. Children in EYFS will also continue to use Tapestry to communicate with teaching staff.

Last term, each child had been given their own personal Google Classroom login which should be in their reading diary. Please contact the school office if you need details of your child’s login.

If you are using Google Classroom on your phone, you will need to download the Google Meet app to run alongside. You will need to log in using your child’s Google Classroom credentials.

The following guidelines are very important and must be abided by at all times.

As a parent, you will:

Give consent for your child(ren) to participate in the Google Meet session.
Be visible at the start of the call and in the SAME room throughout the call, acting as ‘observers’ and ‘monitors’ of the Google Meet session – this is incredibly important to safeguard your child and others. There should only be the child(ren) and at least one parent in the room – NO ONE ELSE.
Ensure no home-based recordings are made of the session.
Please help if there are technical difficulties!
Ensure that your child(ren) is/are dressed properly, are in a place in the house that is quiet (preferably not in a bedroom) and appropriate and that there is a neutral background (or the camera is off if you wish).
Share the Google Meet Rules for pupils and make sure your child understands and follows them.

As a pupil, you will (see poster below to share these with your child (ren)):

Be on time.
Find a quiet space where you can concentrate and pay attention, with at least one of your parents in the room or making sure no one else is in the room with you.
Mute the microphone as soon as you join the meeting – you will be allowed to talk when your teacher tells you!
If the camera is on, make sure you are wearing appropriate clothes – no pyjamas!
If the camera is on, your background is plain.
Only use Chat to ask questions, respond to questions and not to have a chat or personal conversations with your friends.
Use your school Google account to join the meeting.
Not swear or use horrible words. We will be kind at all times.
Follow all these rules or you will be removed from the session.

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