Session Three – 11 July 2020

Number Duets: Remote delivery https://www.artisfoundation.org.uk/

Children can be asked to imagine a giant piece of paper in front of them and write the numbers 1 – 9, firstly with the palm of their hand filling all of the imaginary paper that goes from the floor to as far as they can reach above their heads and to the size (this can be done alone and do all the numbers rather than in pairs or while children are all on screen, pass the number from screen to screen in register order) They paint giant numbers. Once this is done, try the same as Snap does with the children, ask how else they might do it i.e draw with the head or elbow – try out different body parts. Enjoy movements are still big and cover the ‘paper’, strive to find imaginative and varied ways to draw with the body. This can be a lovely physical warm up. You could then ask the children to create a sum on their own just as they do in the video but as a solo. You can adapt this to work with words, write words, explore spelling, grammar, and punctuation also.

Karina from Spanish Saturday school shared a few creative activities that she delivered online to pre-schoolers aged 4-5 years. She found that with little ones, creating a relaxing environment at the beginning of each session is essential. She practices breathing with them, asking the children to breath in and out a few times to relax.

• Asking children to draw something about anything they want and show it to me. Then I ask them questions. I have found in many cases that I can understand their moods while they explain their drawings.
• Passing the ball through the screen activity to another child. Each child receiving the ball has to say their name and say how they feel today or what they have learnt today
• Showing the box with colouful letters/shapes inside to the kids. Ask one child to take one card and say what colour it is. If it is blue, then ask them to go find an object in blue at their home and show it to the others, then say it in Spanish.
• Using a soft toy/teddy. First, we all decide what name is the best for this teddy. Then we decide what the teddy has done that day. Each time we have to remember what we said in the last session and then create a story together.
• Showing the cards with yoga gestures on it and asking the children what they see and if they can copy the gesture.

Mojgan (Harrow Somali Supplementary School) who teaches Maths to year 3 to GCSE, has created a presentation on Loom.

In her presentation entitled ‘Transition to Online Teaching through Selection of Effective Technology’, she talked about the different platforms and software that can be used when teaching online. She emphasised the importance of regular consultation or survey with parents, and the effectiveness of smaller classes with shorter lessons in remote teaching.

Mojgan said:

“You can use Loom for pre-recorded session. For language schools, you can use this app to recode your text or poem in advance, also allows you to record your PowerPoint and show the recorded presentation to your audience. It is very useful for students as they can watch the recorded session in their own time and go through the slides as many times as they wish until they fully understand it.”

Watch the video created in Loom about ‘ Transition to online learning through selection of effective technology ‘

Mojgan talked about how she set up a WhatsApp group with parents, having their permission to hold a regular contact and consultation with them. She has also been seeking children feedback after each lesson on what aspects of the lessons have gone well and what needs to be changed. She briefly spoke about the importance of giving information to both parents and children about online safety.

In terms of individual needs, Mogjan designs different activities for homework and holds a pre-recorded session on Loom to give each child extra support to understand the learning concept. She has found 15 minute sessions with each individual child to be more effective as parents are present at the session and she is able to focus exclusively on each child’s questions. She uses One Note to organise each lesson for each child and record their progress. At the end of our discussion, she explained the differences between the Telegram and WhatsApp applications.