5 Easy Tips for
Distance Learning
Do you feel ovewhelmed in keeping yourself organized during distance learning? These easy tips for distance learning will help you!
I have been in education for 25 years and like you I felt like a first year teacher again. I have had to create organizational systems and routines for online learning.
Here are 5 easy tips for Distance Learning.
Tip 1-Write Everything Down
I have a notebook-just a simple spiral notebook-where I have added sticky note tabs to write down everything. At the back I have a brain waves page (some people call it brain dump) which is just a page where I write everything down! Anything that comes to my mind, or that I know I need to do. I will explain later how to organize
You can use a digital resource-spreadsheet, Trello or a word document if you like but write everything down and you can organize it when you have time.
Tip 2-Keep track of student responses
I use a simple document with names down the side and subjects with dates across the top. See my example below. I use this document for attendance, to keep track of who I have called on and how a student responded to a question. I make several copies back to back and staple together for a week’s worth of documents. At the end of each day, I look at the data to plan lessons and make note of students who need encouragement.
Tip 3-Morning Routine
Start each day with an opening routine. Each morning, I open my class meeting with this song. I teach the students the lyrics and this becomes our class song. After the song, we review our daily schedule, expectations, and we take 3 deep breaths. This is a practice that helps us set our tone for the day.
The components of your morning routine aren’t as significant as being consistent with the routine.
On Mondays or after a long weekend, I review classroom rules to maintain consistent expectations. Grab this resource to review classroom rules.
WANT MORE IDEAS FOR CLASSROOM MANAGMENT? CLICK ON THE PICTURE TO JOIN MY COURSE!
Tip 4-Transition Tasks
Another tip I use, especially for online meetings, is to give my students a task and often a break. As we transition between activities, I tell my students 3 things.
1. What time we will start our next activity
2. What supplies they will need for the next activity
3. An activity to do between activities.
For example, between my reading mini lesson and our read to self time, first I tell my students that they have a 10 minute break and I present a slide that reads “Please return by 10:15.” Next, I ask students to have their read to self book, their reading journal. Finally I tell my students that their task upon returning is to type in the chat box what they are reading. I give them a prompt, “Today I will read–“
I use the chat box responses for accountability and attendance before I begin small group instruction.
Another engaging task that I use for transitions is would you rather questions. Check out my Would You Rather resources.
Tip 5-Motions
As I began teaching online, I continued to use motions to teach concepts. For example, when we do math problems I ask the students to demonstrate which operation they will use. For subtraction, students hold out their arm straight and for addition they make a plus sign with their arms. Teaching students to use motions or gestures helps increase engagement and it can also provide some informal assessment.
