High Hopes - Acceleration & Blending Learning

High High Hopes - Acceleration and Blended Learning

(4-5 minute read)

Imagine a classroom where every student feels confident and excited about learning, where struggling students get the support they need to keep up with their peers, and advanced students are challenged to reach their full potential. This is the promise of blended learning and acceleration.

Echos of this promise can be heard in one of our favorite pop songs:

Had to have high, high hopes for a living

Didn't know how but I always had a feeling

I was gonna be that one in a million

Always had high, high hopes

Mama said

Fulfill the prophecy

Be something greater

Go make a legacy

Manifest destiny

How many of our students feel these lyrics echoing deep in their souls as they walk into our classes each day? High hopes to fulfill the whispers of prophecy that bounce around in their smiles, thoughts, and dreams?

In Panic At The Disco's hit song "High hopes," the group's lead singer, Brandon Urie, sings about a person who is euphoric about his future. He is determined, empowered, and ready to take on a seemingly uncertain world.

Think back to your years in school. How many "High hopes" did you carry with you as you walked the halls, worked in groups, and delivered those uh-mazing book reports to the class? High hopes carry us through so many of life's good (and not so good) events.

Self Efficacy

John Hattie's famous meta-analysis of classroom influences may be familiar to you. In it, he synthesized and ranked a variety of common practices or influences. Out of 256 entries, Hattie ranked self efficacy as the eleventh most important factor (click on link to left for full view). The .96 affect size attributed to self efficacy basically means that the more self assured and optimistic a student is in their abilities, the more likely they will be to succeed in school. A .96 is nearly two years worth of growth in one calendar year!

So how can we help grow these kid's high high hopes? Former Stanford Psychologist, Albert Banduras created a visual to help crystalize our thoughts around. In the image below, you can see that self efficacy can be bolster and is made out of four fundamental experiences: direct experiences, vicarious experiences, social persuasion, and physiological feedback. As the linked article (above) states, "High self-efficacy has numerous benefits to daily life, such as resilience to adversity and stress, healthy lifestyle habits, improved employee performance, and educational achievement."

All students should feel these high high hopes and it can't happen in a classroom that doesn't personalize learning experiences. It may sound like a tall order, but it doesn't have to be.

Experiences are just that. The experiences our students bring with them as they enter our campuses. However, these experiences are also based on performance outcomes. What have they done in the past and how successful have they been at those tasks. Practice becomes an important component to this part of self efficacy. Students who practice a skill, become better at it and feel better about the skill and the actions performed within the skill. This category is the largest indicator of students success (more on this in a bit).

Vicarious Experiences are experiences students see being performed. So when teachers practice (model) a skill in front of the students and verbalize those actions, students still pick up tid-bits and build self efficacy. Watching is less beneficial than doing, but it is still beneficial.

Dr. Banduras

Social Persuasion is when a student is performing a task and they receive positive feedback as they move through the steps of that performance. Verbal persuasion like this is affective with any age, however the effects diminish the older a person gets. So, being authentically positive with younger students can help build that self efficacy that we mentioned earlier.

Physiological Persuasion is connected to the student's psychological and emotional states. However, Dr. Banduras states that the states themselves are not as important as how the person perceives the state they are in. If a student is distraught but has high high hopes of getting past that stressor, then they will be less affected by that moment than a student who doesn't perceive that hope.

As you've probably guessed by now, what all four of these component have in common is the support that teachers can give during a lesson to help build student efficacy brick by experiential brick.

Because blended learning lessons are flexible and can allow for personalization of the process, product, and/or content, we believe that student efficacy can be combined with research based, gap-filling actions like acceleration to propel all students into the high hopes stratosphere.

Blended Learning and Acceleration: Supporting Super High Hopes

Before diving into our example, let's refresh our memories about blended learning and acceleration. Blended learning is an instructional approach mixing face-to-face teaching with digital tools, creating personalized and engaging learning environments. Acceleration gives students struggling with upcoming content a head-start by previewing new concepts and vocabulary, helping them keep pace with their peers (Tomlinson, 2014).

In acceleration, students are often given previews of content the day or week before the content is delivered to the rest of the class. In other words, students may be pulled into small groups to learn an upcoming skill or concept or be given time to learn new vocabulary terms. When they are exposed to the lesson with their peers, accelerated students have likely experiences ALL FOUR of the aforementioned self efficacy "chunks" that are in the image above.

Sample Unit

Now that we're up to speed, let's check out what blended learning and acceleration might look like in a 3rd-grade math classroom.

As you read the following lesson, please take note of the blended, accelaration and self efficacy components!

Fractions, Unite!

Picture this: our 3rd-grade class is starting a new unit on fractions. The teacher, a real-life superhero, wants every student to succeed. Here's how blended learning and acceleration can make that happen:

1. Assess students: The teacher identifies students who may struggle with fractions using assessments, classroom observations, and that good ol' teacher intuition. They may use diagnostic assessments, such as pre-tests, to gauge students' prior knowledge and identify learning gaps (Guskey & Jung, 2013). The teacher can tailor instruction based on where the students struggle, increasing the likelihood of success (Tomlinson & Imbeau, 2010).

2. Preview content: Before the fractions unit, our fantastic teacher offers struggling students access to digital resources, videos, and adaptive math platforms to introduce basic fraction concepts and vocabulary. By pre-teaching key vocabulary and concepts, students have a foundation to build on as new content is introduced (Walpole & McKenna, 2007). This strategy also increases students' confidence and motivation, as they feel better prepared for upcoming lessons (Graham & Perin, 2007).

3. Differentiate instruction: As the unit begins, the teacher employs blended learning strategies to create personalized paths for all students, including those who received acceleration support (Dabbagh & Kitsantas, 2012). One approach is the station rotation model, where students rotate through various learning activities. Differentiation allows the teacher to address students' individual strengths and weaknesses, promoting a deeper understanding of the material (Tomlinson & Imbeau, 2010).

Imagine a 50-minute math block:

• Warm-up (5 minutes): Students complete a quick fractions-related activity to get their brains in gear.
• Station Rotation (3 stations x 15 minutes each):
  • Station 1 - Teacher Table: Students work with the teacher on guided activities at their level, with targeted support for accelerated students. Activities might include using manipulatives to model fractions, working on fraction word problems, or comparing and ordering fractions. The teacher can use strategies like questioning, cueing, and prompting to help students develop a deeper understanding of the content (Van de Walle, Karp, & Bay-Williams, 2013).
  • Station 2 - Technology Station: Students use digital tools like interactive fraction games, online manipulatives, or adaptive platforms tailored to their needs and progress. These tools can help students visualize and explore fractions in a fun and engaging way (Clements & Sarama, 2016), fostering a deeper understanding of the concepts.
  • Station 3 - Independent Collaboration: Students work in pairs or small groups on hands-on activities, like creating equivalent fractions with manipulatives, solving real-world fraction problems, or exploring fraction patterns. Collaborative learning encourages students to share ideas, articulate their thinking, and learn from each other (Gillies, 2014).

4. Provide support: Throughout the unit, the teacher continues offering extra practice and guidance to help accelerated students solidify their understanding and keep up with class pace. This might include providing additional resources, offering targeted feedback, or setting up individual or small group conferences to address specific concerns (Wiliam, 2011).

5. Monitor progress: Our fearless teacher regularly checks in with students, assessing their progress and making adjustments as needed to ensure accelerated students stay on track. They might use exit slips, quizzes, or performance tasks to gather evidence of learning, and then adjust instruction accordingly (Black & Wiliam, 2009).

The Journey Begins

By combining blended learning and acceleration, our imaginary 3rd-grade teacher creates a personalized, inclusive environment where every student can thrive. With the right strategies and a touch of digital magic, all students can shine in the classroom.

So, fellow educators, are you ready to bring the power of blended learning and acceleration to your classroom? By embracing this dynamic duo, you can help all your students stay on pace and reach their full potential. With creativity, dedication, and a dash of digital wizardry, you'll be well on your way to creating an inclusive and engaging learning environment that empowers every student to succeed.

High high hopes!

WHITE SNAKE, road markers & classroom procedures

Yeah... this time White Snake is teaching us something about the classroom, folks.  Routines and procedures help any and every lesson run more smoothly.  The more complex the task or pedagogical approach (like blended learning) the more you'll need to establish R&P.

But first, as my kids like to blurt out when they're excited to share some tidbit of information unrelated to anything I'm trying to talk to them about...

It's time for a... 

Did you know that we haven't always had stripes in the middle of our highways and roads?!  In 1911, the first striping of a road was done in Michigan.  A standardized approach placing stripes on roadways wasn't really agree upon by the states until the mid 1970's!  What the what?!  Yep... Before the 1970s, some states had stripes and other's didn't.  Some stripes were wide and some were narrow... Some stripes were yellow and reflective and other stripes were white and non-reflective.  Isn't that crazy?!  I mean... just from an observational perspective... it's kind of weird to think about.

What if you were driving from Michigan to Texas and, as you entered each state, there were missing lines or the lines were different colors or different shapes?  It would be weird.

Interestingly enough , studies have been done to look into how stripes affect driver's safety... and, guess what, butter cup?  Roads with stripes have few wrecks and people tend to stay closer to the speed limit than roads with no stripes. 

Turns out that the hashed lines help drivers gauge how fast they're going.  And the stripes themselves keep drivers on the right side of the road.  

If you don't Belize me (I'm already things about summer vacation, ugh)... then check out these two websites (I did the research for you, so you don't have to...). The first one is an article on the history of road markings and the second is a pretty dry research site on the topic. 

AND

So, what this really boring research does is address White Snake's (and your student's) need for direction.

Without routines and procedures, your assignments and activities may be perfect, in and of themselves.  There may be directions written on the paper or on the board, but what underlying set of elements important to the task have not been addressed?  Can the kids talk to each other? When? To what extent? Can they work on the floor? If they need a brain break, do they wait for you to tell them or can they take one on their own?  What is proper for peer to peer interaction? What is proper for peer to teacher interaction? Are these expectations posted so everyone can see them?  Have they been reviewed and, more importantly, consistently supported by the teacher AND the students?

Read the following lyrics, but from a student's perspective as they are lost in a lesson and looking for those routines and procedures in your classroom: 

Tho' I keep searching for an answer

I never seem to find what I'm looking for

Oh Lord, I pray you give me strength to carry on

'Cause I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams

Here I go again on my own

Goin' down the only road I've ever known

Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time

Man...the kid singing those lines above is lost and just needs something small to get back on track. I feel for them :)

So...

What do road stripes have to do with White Snake and routines and procedures?

Small lines on the road help save lives.  For the most part, they don't have to be enforced.  Drivers can gauge their own speeds and stay on the right side of the lines... as long as someone paints the lines and tell them what they mean.

It's the same thing in your classroom.  You don't have to create a giant encyclopedia of routines and procedures to get kids to follow them.  YOU don't have to be the only one to enforce them if you empower students to keep each other in check.  

How many times have you put together what you thought was an incredible lesson only to watch it fall apart in an implosion of confusion or a need for you to over-explain the expectations?  Maybe the lesson really WAS awesome, but the classroom routines and procedures were not.

David Coverdale pleads "Tho' I keep searching for an answer, I never seem to find what I'm looking for."  If he only had  "Ask 3 before me".

Poor, confused David Coverdale

Routines and procedures: not just an elementary need.

Tiny, supported shifts in expectations can do wonders.  This tends to happen more in elementary classrooms.  What we secondary level teachers tend to assume is that our students come to us as civilized  human beings fully equip for our lessons.  Fill in this blank space a story from your class. 

 Yes, we need routines and procedures in secondary as well. 

Resources

What are some resources, Charles?  Glad you asked! 

Though this list isn't exhaustive you will certainly find some food for thought here.   Is there currently an issue in your classroom you can’t solve? Rethink the issue through the routines and procedures lens. 

Mull over R&P for everything from how students interact to how do they turn in assignments to what to do when they have some free time to...

Checklist for R&P

30 routines and procedures to think about (Elementary) 

40 (yes, 40... sorry) things to consider regarding R&P

12 Classroom R&P for secondary ELA

Highschool R&P for several items including substitute teachers 

Helpful tools for R&P: 

• timers
• R and P charts
• colored coded folders for tasks 
• in and out boxes for work
• key words to signal transitions 
• music to signal transition
• Listen to 1980s music to revisit our glory days (this one is mainly for me)

Hey, boo! Don't ghost your students!

If there's something weird

and it don't look good

Who you gonna call?

GhostBusters!

 

Speaking of which (or is it witch?)...

Did y'all hear about the one where a dude picks up a drenched girl off the side of a road? She sits in the back seat and directs him to drive her to her house.  He gets there to drop her off, turns around to tell her they are "home" and she's gone with only a puddle of water where she was sitting.  Curious and confused, he goes to the front door to see if the girl somehow walked into the house without him seeing her.  One of the parents opens the door... he relates his story... and the parent(s) reveal...

THAT WAS MY DAUGHTER, BUT SHE DROWNED 10 YEARS AGO THIS VERY NIGHT!!!!!

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

and then we're all like... 

The girl was there and then she wasn't.  It happened without any communication or reason.  The ghost ghosted the guy.  UGH... so traumatic!!!

Ghosting is such a crazy and traumatic event that when someone has been dumped out of the blue with little communication or explanation as to "why"... we call it ghosting.  We expect something that doesn't materialize and, so, we get very very lost and disoriented.

When we expect one event, but are left with a dead end with no communication as to what to expect or do next... you've been ghosted. 

Friedrich Nietzsche once said that human beings need "horizons".  That is, we need boundaries to help limit our expectations and guide our actions. Without "horizons", we don't generally know where to go and what to do.  So we fill in the silence with negativity.  We're lost.  We're "ghosted".  We're annoyed at the lack of guidance in our thoughts and actions. 

In this new online COVID education world there is a need to redouble our efforts to not "ghost" people in our lives, including our students. Here are some suggestions we have to help your students feel more guided and less "ghosted":

• Set up your online course with bread crumbs
• Where do students start?
• Where do they move to the next item or activity?
• Do students have a map in case they get lost? Do they know where they are?
• Do students know how to get back to home-base?
• Where do students end?
• Use more than words to communicate
• Create buttons to navigate your pages
• Use super short videos, GIFs, and images to guide
• Colors and shapes can help guide (think of red octagons and what they mean)
• Bullet points like these help organize a list on a page
• Send out regular communications
• Email or reach out every Monday to let students know what to expect
• Tired of typing emails? Use a video instead.
• Communication can happen via Insta or TikTok... be creative 
• Wrap up your weeks with a summary communicaiton
• LOOP YOUR PARENTS IN AS WELL!!!!
• For every negative email you send... send a positive one (to save your sanity a keep a positive view on what you do every day)
• Answer your students as quickly as possible, but within agreed upon times
• Tell students when you tend to read emails so they know when to expect a reply
• Try to reply within 24-48 hours
• Even if you can't answer them... reach out to say "I got your email.  Give me a moment"
• Fill in that "ghosting" with some sort of information so they don't fill in that silent gap with false assumptions 
• personalize... start the communication with the student's nam
• "Hey MacLamore!  Great to hear from you..."
• DO NOT allow yourself to be accessible 24/7... you'll get burnt out
• By that same token... be accessible when you say you will be accessible
• Reach out to socialize
• Don't be afraid to send images or short comments that help build your culture
• Ex. Hey guys, I went shopping this weekend and this picture I took at the mall reminds me of what Lauri said last week in our discussion!!!
• Need more tips? Check out a previous post concerning the new Educational Land of Confusion world that we live in... and some tips to work around that confusion! 

If there is something weird in your online 'hood 

and it's confusing or don't look good... 

Who are your students gonna call?  

Hopefully, you. 

Solutions: If this, then that.

 If you guys are looking for several practical ways to convert proven face to face activities into an online format, please check out our "If this, then that" page.

In the far left column you'll find face to face actives that many teachers use.  In the center and right columns you'll see online approximations of those activities and how to make them (in the far right column).  

Have fun pursuing through this resource.  If you happen to have an online activity you'd like to share, just reach out to us and we'll add it to the growing list!

2 Things To Do Right Now (Part 2): Start Small

By now I'm sure that everyone is on system overload from all of the digital resources that have been thrown around since this whole COVID-19 stuff began.  It seems that everywhere I looked there was how-to videos, blog posts, Twitter chats and more about all the different digital tools out there.  Honestly, I've been feeling system overload too!  I've talked to so many teachers over the summer as they have come through blended and online learning training sessions, and I think the biggest thing I have heard is how overwhelmed they all feel.  Believe me. I get it!  Many of the teachers I've worked with are trying to learn a new LMS, plan for both online and in person learning as well as figure out how to incorporate digital tools to make learning fun and engaging.  So, you might be wondering - What was my advice to these teachers?  Start small.  

It seems so easy, but it is so true.  Start small.  Don't feel like you have to learn everything in one day or even in one week.  Learn one thing at a time until you get good at it and feel comfortable with it.  Then you can move on to the next thing.  Believe it or not, your students will appreciate this tactic as well.  It's hard for students to constantly be learning to use new technologies, new logins and new procedures every day.  So, take a deep breath and give yourself permission to have the gift of time to learn while you start small.

I know what you are thinking.  Thanks for the advice, but I still feel overwhelmed because I have no idea where to start.  Let's take a look at a few tools that can get you started.  

First, if you are not totally comfortable with the LMS you are using, you should definitely start there.  In

fact, you might even be wondering what does LMS mean.  An LMS is a learning management system. This would be a tool like Canvas.  If you don't even know how to post things in your district LMS, then there is no sense in learning other tools such as Flipgrid, Padlet or some other cool new tool. If you need help getting started with Canvas, Google Classroom or Seesaw, check out our LMS Specific Resources Page for how-to videos and help documents to get you started.

Once you have mastered your chosen LMS, then you can move on to some other tools that can add some additional engagement to your online course work.  A few of my favorites that are easy to master, but can have many uses are Padlet, Vocaroo and Screencasting.  

Padlet is a great tool that is like using sticky notes with an online bulletin board.  There are so many

different ways to configure the board that it makes it so versatile.  The more I use this tool, the more I think of new ways to use it.  A few ways that I have seen it used is as a graphic organizer, a brainstorming board, a way to give feedback, KWHLAQ, a place to post and vote on book trailers, a repository for resources and so much more.  If you are ready to take the plunge and try out Padlet, check out our Padlet how-to video.

Vocaroo may seem like a simple tool, but once again if you think outside the box, there are tons of ways to use it.  Vocaroo is a tool that lets you record audio online.  The thing that makes this tool stand out is that you don't need to create an account and it's so easy to use.  You simply record and save and Vocaroo

generates a link to your audio recording just like that.  This tool is especially useful for early elementary teachers and students who may not be able to read yet.  Teachers can easily create audio directions to go along with any assignment in just a few clicks.  This program is so easy that you could even teach your students as young as kindergarten to use the recording feature in order to make it easier for you to hear students reading or even to collect audio responses for assignments.  Now don't rule this out if you teach older kids because this is always a great tool to use for students that need oral administration of tests or even to add to assignments so you can give some extra context through audio.  If you are interested in learning more about Vocaroo, check out our Vocaroo how-to video.

Finally, let's take a look at one of my favorite things - screencasting.  Screencasting is when you use some type of software to record your screen and your voice at the same time.  Most screencasting tools also allow you to use your webcam and have your own video appear as well. In fact, the how-to videos that are

linked in this blog post were all created with screencasting software.  There are many different types of screencasting software out there - some that are really expensive and others that are free.  Let's take a look at a free tool that I really like.  Screencast-o-matic is a free screencasting tool that you can use to create your own short teaching videos to post online for your students.  All you need to get started is something you want to share on your screen such as a Google Slides, a page in your LMS, an assignment you want to explain or anything else that you might want to use in a lesson and you'll be ready to go.  To learn more about using Screencast-o-matic, check out our Screencast-o-matic how-to video.

Remember to start small.  Choose one tool at a time to focus on and continue to grow your online tool belt each week.

Making Lemonade Out of Lemons

 
     It's been a little while since my last post.  Since then it seems the world has been turned upside down.  We all have a new normal that we're trying to get used to.  I, myself, have been working from home since the middle of March.  Suddenly I went from a job where I was always on the go, driving to different campuses all over our region to work with teachers and visit classrooms to sitting at a desk staring at a computer for 8 hours every day.  I was doing several webinars per day over Zoom for the teachers of my region as well as others who joined us from all over the country.  This new way of teaching and learning was new for all of us.
     Even though I know this has been a super hard transition on everyone from teachers to students to parents, I think that we should take a moment to reflect on the good that has come out of this situation.  We should look at this as a learning experience and reflect on it so that we can continue to utilize effective teaching practices that have surfaced through all of this.
     First, this has forced so many to step out of their comfort zone to try new things.  It might be just trying to get on a Zoom meeting or trying to get started in a new LMS.  Although it seemed scary at first and maybe overwhelming, what I see is a whole new culture of learning and helping each other.  If you look on Twitter or Facebook, some teachers are creating help videos and posting them in order to help other teachers.  Other teachers are creating lessons, hyperdocs and fun templates in Google
Docs and freely sharing them with other teachers around the country through social media.  Through this pandemic, it has allowed the walls of our classrooms to come down and instead of millions of individual classrooms with their doors closed, we now have giant open spaces where we are all free to share ideas and resources while learning from each other.  This is the way it should be.  We are not competing against each other.  We all have the same goal - yes, every teacher at every school in America has the same goal - to educate our students.
     Although this situation has been hard on many students and families, other students have really been able to thrive in this environment.  Am I suggesting that we continue sheltering in place forever?  Of course not, but what we can take a look at is what was it about this situation that has allowed some students to thrive.  I have heard teachers say that their quiet/shy students are participating much more in their online discussion boards.  I've heard others say that students that were given choice boards were really excited and did their work without even being told to do it.  Still others have said that the flexible schedules have allowed their students to be more productive.  Let's think about these things.  The quiet/shy students are quiet in normal classrooms.  Why is that?  Maybe they are scared to speak in front of others or maybe they need more time to process before giving an answer.  Given the online learning space, these students can have the time they need to process their answers and post asynchronously whenever they want.  They also don't
have to speak up in front of 30 other kids.  That can be intimidating to anyone.  Can we continue to offer online discussion forums, Flipgrid and other ways to interact online when we return to face-to-face school?  Absolutely!  We've also seen a lot of choice boards or playlists being assigned to students.  Students are really enjoying the freedom to choose what they do instead of being told and having everyone do the exact same assignment.  I mean, who doesn't like choices?  This is another easy thing that we can take back to our traditional classrooms.  Finally, many students are now able to choose their schedules each day.  Am I a morning person?  I can get up early and start working.  Night owl?  I'll do my work after everyone else goes to sleep.  Maybe I can only sit still for 30 minutes at a time.  Now I can take as many breaks as I want.  I know what you are thinking.  No, I'm not crazy and I know that kids can't just go to school whenever they want when we return to the classroom, but we should take some of these things into consideration.  Think about offering more choices on when, where and how students get to learn while offering flexible times and spaces in which to do it.  Why do we all have to sit in desks in rows?  What if I work better laying on the floor?  What if I need more frequent breaks while my neighbor wants to just plow through and get everything done without stopping.  Why can't we have it both ways?
     During this time, I have heard from teachers and read several articles that talked about how blended learning classrooms are faring during this time of remote learning.  Although blended learning by definition must include at least some instruction in a face-to-face setting, (so they are no longer in a blended learning environment) blended learning teachers and students seem to be faring better through this situation that others.  Why is that?  I think one lesson we can take from them is that they already have the systems and procedures in place for digital learning.  Blended learning teachers already use an LMS such as Google Classroom or Canvas with their students.  They already use many digital tools such as Flipgrid, Quizizz, Kahoot and possibly even online learning software such as Imagine Learning, IXL or Lexia.  All of this translates into a much easier transition from the face-to-face world to the digital world.  Blended learning teachers are still using playlists and have small group meetings with their students only now they are doing it through Zoom.  Students are still moving forward in their learning because they know how to own their own data and how to track their learning goals.  So, do I think that remote learning will last forever? No.  But, I do think that it would be in a teacher's best interest to learn more about blended learning so that they can take advantage of these systems and processes, but also because it is an effective way to personalize learning for all students.  Just think about how many gaps your students will have in their learning when school starts again in the fall and unfortunately all of their gaps will be different.  The ONLY way to meet all of these needs in the fall is going to be through personalized learning.
     Once again, teachers are the heroes that they always have been.  We've become good at making lemons out of lemonade.  Just because things return to normal doesn't mean we have to throw out the lemonade!

If you are interested in learning more about Planning for the Win with Blended Learning, check out our website for live Zoom sessions, recorded sessions and resources.  Feel free to reach out to us and schedule a live training session or brainstorming session.

4 tips to avoid the Land of Confusion in the Covid-19 era.

My favorite lines from this song have always been:

Now, this is the world we live in
And these are the hands we're given

Use them and let's start trying

To make it a place worth fighting for

With the "new normal" of the COVID-19 world, there will likely be times when our daily tasks and routines are disrupted to one degree or another.  Tonight, President Trump suspended flights to and from Europe, the NBA has suspended the season, and there are questionable hoarding practices (toilet paper, really?) by far too many people.

Once the wave of disruption reaches your locality, it will NOT likely be like a bad weather day.  The disruption probably won't be corrected later in the school year using one or two predetermined "make up" days.  This coming front will be decidedly different than our last cold front.

IF... that's a strong IF... you have to start considering your own personal classroom contingency plan, consider the following:

1.  Take care of yourself & your loved ones: If you're not ok, then you won't be of any educational help to your students. This includes maintaining communication and connection with fellow teachers and staff.  Your campus is NOT simply the physical brick and mortar.  The cultural fabric of your school is made of relationships which can continue and gain strength in moments like this.

2. Reach out: Use tech resources like Remind, Zoom, Flipgrid, or even emails to check in on your students.  They need normalcy and you can provide that for them by simply checking in.  Make sure to reach out to parents as well to let them know what you are offering and when.  Make parents a part of the process if at all possible.

3.  Stay positive: It's a scary enough world already for most of our students and the "coolness" of sitting at home will wear off quickly enough.  Student's parents may be experiencing lay offs, a variety of material shortages, and/or a surplus of anxiety.  Act like a hero even if you have to fake it.  Model for your students that teaching isn't just a "job", it's a calling.

4. Be a rock: Move your teaching to an online format.  Teaching online means offering a predictable schedule/routine that your students can rely on and look forward to.  If you can keep your school schedule in place, then do so.  If you need to move somethings around, then do so.  But try to be available the same time each day and the same days each week.  It's times like these where you are literally the foundation of civilization by doing that thing you do.

4. Keep teaching: Whether you're an online expert, a blended guru, or something else, your lessons can serve as an appreciated addition to the "new normal".  Try using well thought out, high Bloom's discussion boards.  Learn or experiment with Canvas, Google Classroom, or some other tech LMS vehicle.  Create a "home base" for your lessons. As long as you keep the relationship in focus, keep pushing kids to think.  Keep engaging students with rigorous content/questions.  Keep putting yourself out there for your students. Model for them that the world hasn't shut down, it just look a little differently for a little while.

Don't ask:

Oh, Superman, where are you now?
When every thing's gone wrong somehow?

Rather, be that light that shines in the dark that cannot be extinguished by the dark.