Please find attached a document that sets out our approach to Remote Learning. It covers the following areas.
- Aims
- Roles & Responsibilities
- Who to Contact
- Data Protection
- Safeguarding
- Monitoring Arrangements
- Links with other policies
- Curriculum Delivery
Please read it carefully so that you can understand the structure in place.
If you have questions please get in touch with school via the school office. We have answered some of the more common questions below and will add to this over time.
Remote learning is a new experience for all of our school community - staff, parents, pupils - and is evolving all the time. Please be patient with school as we try things out and develop what is in place and please be kind to yourselves and your children as you navigate this new experience. Not everything will be successful all the time, but by working together and communicating we can support our children together to have the best outcomes in this challenging environment.
FAQ - frequently asked questions
Why is the school not doing lots of live lessons?
With regards to live learning on Google Hangouts or equivalent, we have given this a lot of thought and research but decided that this is not the right approach for us. We agree with OFSTED in their latest review, read here, when they say that live lessons aren't always best. These are our main reasons:
- many of our parents need to access the learning at different times of day and live learning doesn't cater for this,
- many families with two or more children have only one device to share and cannot teach all their children with live lessons, our class live google meets are timed to make sure there is no overlap
- given the number of pupils we currently have in school there would be issues about how to do it successfully without any safeguarding concerns. It would not be appropriate to live stream to children's homes while supervising classroom of children at school.
- substantial amounts of screen time can be both unhealthy for children and cause them to be disengaged.
We have a really good uptake from our families with high levels of engagement and high quality learning going on. Our google meet sessions provide the social interaction with the class and their teacher and are really well attended. With this mix we feel we cater for all our families, including those who cannot attend live sessions due to their working arrangements, while giving a good range of learning experiences for every pupil.
My child does not want to be seen on the screen at a google meet/ zoom. What shall I do?
If your child is shy of appearing on screen that is not a problem. The aim of the meet is for your child to hear the story or take part in the activity and have some daily contact with their class. They can attend the meet with their camera switched off, click on the camera symbol in a circle and it will turn off. They might find they get more confident once they have tried it this way.
If my child doesn't understand a piece of work what shall I do?
If it is not something you are able to explain post a message or email their teacher to tell them and they will help. They might put up more instructions or contact you directly. Your child might also want to ask his/her classmates for help by putting a message on the stream. Please don't try to carry on with the work if your child doesn't understand it. Leave it and do something else. It may be something to come back to once you've had advice but there is no need to keep going when there is a problem. It is more important that your child is doing work they can succeed in and seeks help when they can't.
We might not get through all the learning everyday. Which is the most important?
Obviously all the work we post is important and we are following the government guidelines in setting the quantity they ask for. However, we appreciate that everyone's circumstances are different. The key areas of learning to focus on are: phonics (for YR-2), regular reading, writing tasks and maths. Reading and Maths are especially important, reading because it is such a vital life skill and maths because if you miss chunks it is hard to build up your skills. Our children's mental health and well-being takes priority over all of this though so please make sure there is time to have proper breaks.
How do I know if the work my child is doing is of a good enough standard?
Always encourage your child to do their best. We will challenge your child to improve in the feedback we give them. We are mindful however that we cannot know what every child's situation is at home and do not want to put children or parents under unreasonable pressure. We would encourage parents to look at the first few pages of the National Curriculum Requirements for their year group on this page. This will give you something to measure against.
When we are on a google meet sometimes we can't see everyone and they can't see us. Are we still in the meeting?
Because of the number of people on a google meet sometimes the internet connection struggles to stream them all at the same time. To help, it chooses to turn the streaming off and people appear with a circle with their initial or their id photo. Don't worry if this happens, you are still in the meeting and can still be heard (unless you have muted your microphone) and listen. You might find it drops in and out of live streaming a few times on the same meet as it tries to cope with demand.
What if my child does not have access to an appropriate device to access the learning?
Please contact school and we will provide you with an appropriate device to access learning.
What if my child has to work in an environment with limited internet access?
Please contact school and we will support you with access to wifi hotspots and mobile phone data upgrades.