This is Gina Johnson, Director of Instructional Support Services at Servite High School. I’m reaching out to you in order to provide some additional guidance and support with our remote learning model. Remote learning can be a challenge, and we are all adjusting to recent changes in our environment and lifestyle. Below are my 5 Best Tips for Remote Learning Success, as well as a corresponding video that explains each concept in more detail, and how you might implement it at home.
I hope you find this helpful. Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions.
- ESTABLISH A ROUTINE: Continue to sleep, eat, shower, etc. at your normal times. On days when you would normally attend school, set aside time to work. Continue to have dinner as a family if possible, do your normal chores, etc. Sticking to a routine provides us a sense of normalcy which is very important in uncertain times.
- CREATE A CALENDAR: Though remote learning is more flexible, there is more time associated with completing an assignment that needs to be accounted for. Each assignment requires that students have viewed the lecture, possibly attended office hours to answer questions, and then set aside time to complete the assignment. This is a new level of time management for most students and those time slots need to be accounted for in a schedule.
- REDUCE DISTRACTIONS: In your calendar, I recommend several blocks of work time instead of one large “school block” from 8-3. When you are working, it’s important to reduce distractions. There is a chrome extension called Citrus that blocks time-sucking websites for a period of time, ambient backgrounds or instrumental playlists to improve focus, and utilization of the Pomodoro method which works with the brain’s natural concentration cycles (see the video for more info!)
- ALIGN EXPECTATIONS: Home environments have changed drastically. Parents and students need clear communication about when students are working, what grade expectations are, etc. If all family members are suddenly working and going to school from home, it may be difficult for students to attribute the same amount of time to school as they’re used to. Aligning expectations provides clarity for everyone’s role in the household and can be enforced with external rewards and consequences.
- UTILIZE RESOURCES: Attend teacher office hours, take advantage of remote peer tutoring, set up a zoom study group with classmates. You are not alone!
Calendar considerations: It is difficult for students to maintain focus during all normal school hours of 8AM-3PM . I recommend breaking up the day into several blocks of work time with long breaks in between in order to improve focus. Students do not have a live teacher with them to guide, engage, and monitor progress. It is less likely that a student will be able to do those things on their own for six hours continuously. Below I have included a sample schedule that I created for a student. Feel free to use this as a template/guideline as you discuss what would work best for your family.
SCHEDULE
7:30AM-8:30AM | Wake up, eat breakfast and shower.
8:30AM-9AM | Check Google Classroom, create a task list for the day/week. e.g. What needs to get done today, tomorrow, etc? What resources are being used to complete these tasks?
9AM-12PM | Work on something for half an hour, and take a break for 5-10 minutes.
12PM-1PM | Lunch/break.
1PM-2:30PM | Work on something for half an hour, and take a break for 5-10 minutes.
2:30PM-3:30PM | Have a physically active break.
3:30PM-4:30PM | Finish homework not yet finished or study/read.
4:30PM-5:30PM | Decompression break (relaxing activities).
5:30PM-6PM | Dinner.
6PM-7:30PM | Remote social time.
7:30PM-8:30PM | Finish homework not yet finished or study/read.
8:30PM-9PM | Break.
9PM-9:30PM | Chores.
9:30PM-10PM | Wind-down.
10PM | Bed.
