Centennial Comprehensive Distance Learning Plan

(Teachers contributed to the plan through our building Distance Learning Team.)

According to John Hattie, “It does not matter whether teachers undertake teaching in on-site form or from a distance over the internet. What we do matters, not the medium of doing it.”

What works best for students in a distance learning environment over-all:

Hattie’s research shows that influences with an effect value over 0.40 are above average and will accelerate students’ learning. This value is shown below in parenthesis next to each influence listed.

• Fostering student self-regulation is crucial for moving learning to deep transfer levels.
  (Self regulation strategies, 0.52) (Behavior Intervention Programs / SEL, 0.62)
• Learning accelerates when the students, not the teacher, are taught to be in control of learning.
• There needs to be diversity of instructional approaches.
• Well-designed peer learning impacts understanding. (Collaborative Learning, 0.55)
• Feedback in a high trust environment must be integrated into the learning cycle. (0.70)

Communication & Classroom Google Site

The landing page will look the same K-12 and other elements described below will look the same K-5.

• Each teacher will create a Google Site for their virtual classroom. The landing page will include: Contact information, office hours, information on how to access the help desk, and a description of the class. It should include email links for the teacher and specialists that work within the classroom. (Teacher Organization, 0.75)
• Student Page: A weekly/monthly schedule, lesson plans that clearly state learning goals and success criteria, classroom management plan, a link to co-constructed agreements, current assignments, popular links used, where to find classroom materials, and a way for students to easily contact the teacher with (Teacher Clarity, 0.75; Learning Goals, 0.68; Learning Intentions, 0.48)
• Family/Parent Page: A recorded parent/student orientation for the classroom, information about grading/report cards/conferences, information about the teacher, helpful content links, and links to school/district websites. The school newsletter and monthly classroom newsletters should also be included on this page. (Parent involvement, 0.50)
• Frequently Asked Questions: Where to find contacts, assignments, materials, how to submit work, how to retrieve graded work, how to get teacher help with academics, how to get technical help, etc.

Instructional Design / Classroom Schedule

• All teachers will have office hours from 8:00-8:30 am each morning so that parents and students can connect prior to class. Teachers will also designate office hours at the end of each day.
• All elementary classrooms will start their digital day at 8:30 am with a virtual morning meeting. Social Emotional Learning will be woven into that meeting, along with an emotional check The day will end with reflection, encouragement, and a plan for the next day. (Teacher-Student Relationship, 0.52)
• English/Language Arts and Math lessons will be taught daily in the morning hours with synchronous instruction.
• Science or Social Studues, and PE instruction will occur a minimum of three days each week.
• Music, Art, and Digital Citizenship will be taught at least twice a (Creativity Programs, 0.62)
• Social Emotional Learning: The counselor will visit each virtual classroom at least twice a month and teach a The counselor will put together small social groups and schedule regular meetings. The counselor will survey teachers to pinpoint at-risk students who struggled with distance learning last spring, and develop a plan with the family/student for success this year. Social Emotional Learning will be woven into instruction every day, throughout the day. (Behavior Intervention Programs, 0.62)
• All classrooms will have lunch from 11:30 am-12:15 pm and encourage students to take a break.
• While morning instruction will lean towards more synchronous instruction, afternoon instruction will focus on project based learning, collaboration, and small group instruction.
• Title, English Development Assistance, TAG, and Special Education (SDI) small group instruction will be included in the afternoon Each classroom will be assigned support staff to assist. This will be kept as consistent as possible to encourage student/staff relationships. Reading Intervention services will use the intervention pieces from the district adopted English/Language Arts Curriculum. (Teacher-Student Relationships, 0.52)
• Students who receive Specially Designed Instruction or Reading Intervention will be given a learning buddy or instructional support staff member that will provide additional help with classroom work and individualized lessons.
• Instruction will be tiered so struggling students and students that need acceleration will all be challenged and supported. (Acceleration Programs, 0.68)
• Monthly assemblies will still happen virtually and will focus on the 7 Habits, Digital Citizenship and Social Emotional Learning.

Requirement:

50% Teacher Facilitated – synchronous or asynchronous learning
50% Applied Learning – extends from teacher facilitated learning

Recommended:

• K-3: 2 hours, 20 minutes per day or (11 hours, 40 minutes per week minimum) of teacher facilitated and two hours of daily applied learning each day.
• 4-5: 2 hours, 30 minutes per day (12 hours, 30 minutes per week minimum) of teacher facilitated and two hours of daily applied learning.
• Wellness activities must happen daily for K-5.

Student Engagement Strategies

• Work on student/teacher relationships with many touch points throughout the day.
  1. A calling system for students who are not participating. (Classroom Participation, 0.82)
  2. Most live sessions will include whole group and small group (Classroom Discussion, 0.82)
  3. Sticks, name cards, or keep a tally to ensure students are not called on disproportionately.
  4. Tasks designed with engagement involved.
• Provide students with rigorous instruction that has some element of student choice.
• Provide students with opportunities for collaboration, project based learning, and focus on self assessment or goal (Collaborative activities may include: book clubs, text rendering, the jigsaw approach, reciprocal teaching [0.74], expert groups, collaborative writing, etc.)
• Change the Personal Management section of the report card to reflect classroom or digital learning, and work to set student goals around the standards.
• Give students time for self reflection. (0.75)
• Find opportunities for fun!

Assessment & Monitoring Student Progress

(Feedback, 0.70)

• Running Records will be used in grades K-3. (Response to Intervention, 1.29)
• Smarter Balanced Interim Assessments
• Work Samples
• Formative Assessment Strategies: Exit Tickets, student work, written reflections, unit or chapter tests, student interviews, projects. Scoring rubrics and success criteria will be shared upfront with students prior to the task. (Formative Evaluation, 0.48)
• There will be a minimum of four teacher/parent conferences, in addition to informal check-ins throughout the year and a beginning of the year orientation.

Attendance

• Attendance will be taken daily along with clear expectations communicated to parents and students.

Possible On-site Small Group Interventions and / or additional counselor support for students:

(Response to Intervention, 1.29)

• Who struggle with low self-regulation and are highly dependent on the teacher.
• Who return with high levels of stress or social emotional concerns.
• Who already have a lack of progress in school.
• Who have low concepts of themselves as learners.
• Who lack proficiency in critical reading or math skills.
• Who have parents who have limited capacity or desire to engage in schoolwork from home.