Teaching in a Socially Distanced Classroom
Whether teaching in-person, hybrid, or completely online, teachers are looking for new techniques and resources for student engagement (and if you’re already an expert…. stop reading this, and share your knowledge!)
My school is on campus but in socially distanced classrooms. Students and teachers wear masks, stay six feet apart, don’t share materials, and stick to seating charts and cohorts. If a student tests positive, the school does contact tracing so that the other students closest to them can be quarantined.
During the first two weeks of school, a few dozen students were quarantined. This meant that two of my five classes were 50% present with me in the classroom and 50% zooming in to our high-tech OWL devices. Teachers who teach a mix of online and in-person simultaneously already know…. it’s nearly impossible to engage every student in that kind of atmosphere.
Why is that model so difficult?
At-home students will have tech issues Zooming in
In-class students can’t be monitored as closely because teachers will be “tethered” to the Zoom technology positioned in the room
Time-lapses will interrupt your smooth transitions
Unless you join your own Zoom and screen share the material, students at home won’t see the board 100% clearly
Students at home might have their videos off, or not respond when you call on them
Favorite way to check in with students emotionally… I got my set of 9 squares here.
I am very lucky to have only taught in that dual model for two weeks. Here are the techniques that made my classes more successful:
Checking in with students emotionally
E-mailing/surveying online students to check in and find out if anything was confusing
Nearpod & other activities where the prompts are on the students screen and not just the classroom screen
Having a 5+ minute independent activity to start class. This allows me to take attendance, get my Zoomers situated, without the urgency of teaching to the whole class for a few minutes
If I did it AGAIN… I would shared my daily slides with my Zoomers. This doubles prep time but I think would have made their experience much smoother
Now that we continue to teach in socially distanced classrooms, here are the additions I am integrating into my lessons:
Digital homework assignments
Quizlet Learn (Teacher Account allows me to grade this)
Wizer Worksheets
Nearpod
Quizizz
PDF worksheets through TPT (free)
EdPuzzle videos with questions
Digital quizzes but paper tests
Google forms automatically grades my vocab checks now!
Scanning back tests with comments to students (reduces shared germs, but it also makes grades more transparent, less likely to be lost, and more accessible to parents)
Gamification App! Tech lessons by: Robert Petito on Twitter & YouTube
Moving my gamification to an online platform
Many of the same techniques I discussed in my Spring blog post on remote teaching
Pocketful of Primary on YouTube is a tech wizard!
In conclusion, I think that this pandemic is revolutionizing teaching. Teachers are embracing this time as a period of growth, and reflecting on best practices. Teachers are incredibly resourceful, and when faced with a challenge, they step up. Now more than ever I feel like I am connected to my students because I am asking for more feedback, trying new things, and empathizing with situations we are all struggling with. To end on a positive note, here are some thoughts on teaching in a socially distanced classroom:
What are your students emotional needs that you are meeting or trying to meet?
What aspects of your curriculum can you reflect on and prioritize?
What assignments have a similar learning retention when digitized, and what assignments NEED to be completed on paper?
What aspects of in-person teaching do you have a new appreciation for?
You can check out my pre-made resources here or on TPT.
If you are a frequent buyer, click here to check out the monthly membership for $10 that includes 3 Latin classroom activities each month!
Student computer icon by Freepik
