As the temperature heats up, we are reminded that summer is right around the corner, even if every day in quarantine feels like Groundhog Day.
we cannot foresee what life will be like in the fall, but we can be sure of one thing: “Many educators and parents are concerned about “The Covid Slide.”. So, how do we re-engage students after a hard spring semester? Even if we can’t change their minds about reading and writing, we can restore their enthusiasm for them.
What’s something you’ve always wanted to know more about?
Many people asked me, “Can’t folks just do PBL-lite?” after the epidemic hit and distant learning became a reality. My initial reaction to homeschooling was to cling to the familiar rather than imagine how things might be different under these new conditions. PBL can be reimagined in a way that allows students to learn more effectively at home. The question “what have you always wanted to learn about?”
became a habit with my own two children. We began our PBL-lite trip there. My children were actively investigating, learning digital citizenship, reading, writing, thinking like scientists, and sharing their findings with the world in authentic ways without my knowledge. To keep students engaged during the summer, I feel PBL-lite is a possible approach.
Keep “no-tech” learning options in your back pocket to restrict screen usage throughout the summer as another approach to keep learning light. The following are some suggestions on ways students might continue to learn on their own or in groups while adhering to the PBL-lite philosophy:
Involve Yourself
Distance learning makes differentiation incredibly challenging, but best practices in teaching and learning remind us that for learning to be meaningful, it must be personal. While this is true for both traditional “brick and mortar” schools and online learning, I believe it is even more critical in the latter. There are a number of ways to get around this problem:
Allow students to investigate areas of interest and establish agency by co-developing what the learning will look like through Passion Projects. As a starting point for your own work, you can utilise this template to assist structure of student learning.
For “teaching” math, schools are relying more than ever on apps and technologies to make arithmetic accessible to all students. You can see what standards kids have mastered and where the “holes” remain by using Khan Academy or Prodigy math. From there, you can determine which concepts a student is having difficulty grasping and use Engage NY’s standards-aligned modules and Embarc’s aligned videos to help them. Teachers can “open up” further levels and missions in Khan Academy if a student has demonstrated mastery of the present tasks or grade level.
At the very least, learn to read and write.
The ability to read and write is a priceless asset that will serve a youngster well throughout their lifetime. Students may not have been sent home with the “just right” books if the launch of distance learning was unplanned, which was one of the many challenges. As part of our neighbourhood’s puzzle and book exchange, I invited kids my own age to bring puzzles and books that would be appropriate for them. This provided us with new reading material until we could return to the library.
There is a role for schools in helping parents learn how to recognise a “just right” child “students and support activities like book clubs and read aloud at home, as well.
If you’re an English teacher or an author, you know that kids need to write frequently. And not simply a bunch of pointless journal entries that no one will ever read. I’m referring to tasks that require students to brainstorm, outline, draught, edit and revise their work. For the time being, schools appear to be struggling to understand this writing process, as giving criticism is particularly difficult. Close the feedback loop by asking relatives and friends to provide input on a Google Doc using any of the following methods:
- Write an interesting article about a topic you’ve researched.
- Get your creative juices flowing and craft a story.
- Use an argumentative essay to persuade someone to take a certain action.
There is a significant amount of writing involved in each of the endeavours I’ve described here. The running series for the Union-Tribune shows how sports events may be used as a setting for writing in a number of styles.
Summer vacation is always a wonderful time for students to spend time doing things they enjoy and making new memories. As a parent and a school administrator, I believe we can work together to address the achievement gap that the COVID-19 has created in our districts while simultaneously providing students with happy summer memories.
