Online Lesson basics: Part One

​Melbourne is back to remote online learning. Again. Just as I psyched myself up for a hybrid model, it is now back to remote online learning. A small price to pay to keep people safe especially considering I live and teach in a hotspot. 
After the last round of online Zooms and lessons, I have had some epic failures. Video lessons where you can see kids rolling their eyes and disengaging. On the other side, the exciting sessions that you plan evoke the same response. 
So I have come to find a good balance so far. Here are some of my key thoughts on a good online lesson. 

Check-in and see how they are: mental wellbeing is vital at this stage. Kids like many of us, have good motivated days and days where they want to stay in bed. Like in any classroom, you gauge the room and adjust accordingly. 

2. A clear focus: I pick three things to teach each online session. Short and sharp. They also match the work the kids do on their daily assigned work. That way students get their double hit and the learning supports the assigned work. 

3. Clear expectations: the clearer I am in expectations, the more familiar it seems to them and the better they respond. This has been the biggest curve for me. The line between must and if you can. It is the trickiest to navigate as we have no idea what is happening behind close doors. All I can do is be clear on my end.  

4. A chance for students to engage: nothing worse than sitting there and listening to someone speak. We know. We have all had meetings I am sure. Engagement doesn’t mean speaking the whole time either. Some kids just are not confident yet. It could mean writing down, taking notes, completing a problem or anything that gets them doing something. 

5. Supporting visuals: it is vital to have supporting visuals. Kids can at least read the screen while you speak. I often just ask them to spend the next two minutes reading the screen a few times, it breaks things up and gives them a supporting mental image. 

6. Thought-provoking questions: in over twenty years of teaching, this is always one of my keys. Have great questions that provoke response or emotion. I always add in questions the create an emotional response or get students to have an opinion. They become more invested in the conversation. Time also flies when you are engaged in a good discussion. This is the one thing that I start planning every lesson or learning experience with. Good questions are vital in helping promote student thinking.

teachers have done the amazing.  Changed the way that they deliver content under stress, Minimal resources and minimal training. Stay stRong, stanD tall and be proud of all you have achieved so far. #tWocrEativeteachers #education #teacHer