My Recommendations to You

Although my district is using today as a planning day for teachers to prepare comprehensive review plans that are consistent among teachers within a grade level, we are officially starting our homeschool today. I volley back and forth between being excited to have this time with my daughter and scared/sad that I am not in my room with my students. 

I know my plans as a teacher include pushing out some solid review by topic each week until April 3rd. I will also post some optional extension activities. Since this is new to everyone, it is hard to tell what is the right amount of work to post. Everyone at home is operating differently right now; everyone will work at a different pace and have a different motivation. I think this is an important time, however, to establish a consistent schedule and routine. IF this goes longer than the governor's mandated three weeks, families need to be prepared to have children mentally and physically able to learn new material at home. 

As a result, I am recommending to parents to do the following:

• Set a schedule
  • Whether you are home with your child or a sitter is, the key will be consistency. We all have great intentions of doing this over summer but if you family is like mine, that soon slips as play dates pop up and camps interfere. Now, with hibernation underway, we have no excuses. We can use this to our advantage 
• Don't forget about Encore/Specials
  • At my school district, the Encore teachers are putting together a website that will give students things to do at home for art, music, gym, and library. We also have a STEM teacher that has a Google Classroom plan for our students at the upper elementary level. We cannot forget about these activities! These are critical to young children and are often the key to busting boredom. 
  • If your district doesn't have a plan for this, try to inspire creativity in the core activities. No one says math has to be paper and pencil! Grab some m&ms and start counting, sketch a picture and write a story, and go outside and have a dance party in the driveway. 
• Challenge your child
  • Is there a topic they have been curious about? Now is the time to let them explore it! Whether it is a career, a hobby, or an animal doesn't matter. Let them start a research project, movie, or creative masterpiece that lets them truly explore what they want to explore. 
  • Resources you can use at home to accomplish this include Ducksters, Libby (you will need a library card), National Geographic Kids, YouTube, BrainPop, and even some great shows on Netflix and Hulu. 
  • Check out this site: https://askatechteacher.com/20-great-research-websites-for-kids-2/