It’s common practice for teachers to use deadlines and late penalties as deterrents for students who request extensions or turn in late work. One teacher, however, provides a peek at how and why she morphed from a rigid to a more flexible deadline/late penalty policy and what she observed as a result. When Brenda Thomas began teaching online in 2015, her policy was to deduct 10% of the grade for each day an assignment was…
We’re used to summers filled with barbecues with friends, pool parties, and sightseeing vacations, but the coronavirus pandemic changes things. Despite the disappointment of canceled concerts, events, cruises, and camps, it is still possible to have a fun summer as a family–and more importantly, stay safe while doing so. Here are some at-home activities to replace those that might be taking a hiatus this summer. Swimming Alternatives 1. Use a lawn sprinkler. Provided you have yard…
Are you ready to make a truly inclusive classroom? To do so means challenging the status quo, removing curriculum barriers, and presenting educational goals in interesting ways to engage all learners and serve all students equally. Inclusive learning provides all students with access to flexible learning choices and effective paths for achieving educational goals in spaces where they experience a sense of belonging. In an inclusive education environment, all children, regardless of ability or disability,…
Let’s face facts: reading textbooks and e-books that cover academic information is not enjoyable. Effective textbook reading is a key study skill for student success, however, as nearly every class requires you read them. Reading textbooks is very different from other kinds of reading, which is why certain specialized strategies may really come in handy. Here are 3 hacks for reading textbooks that can help make studying more doable. SQ3R Method The SQ3R Method is…
Hi everyone! My name is Melanie, and I am an ASHA Certified Speech Language Pathologist. I have a great deal of experience working with children ages 3-12 in order to give them the tools/strategies to be able to better access the classroom curriculum. I have worked with children diagnosed with a variety of disorders and disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), ADHD, Fragile X Syndrome, Down Syndrome, reading and writing disabilities (e.g. dyslexia, hyperlexia),…
Building community among students and teachers is more important now than ever, but it’s also probably never been more difficult as all learning moves online. Teachers can still build strong communities of learners and strong rapport with students, however, even without seeing them in person. Here are four tips for building community in the online classroom. 1. Frequent communication is a must to begin building classroom community. Sending a welcome email at the beginning of…
Online learning is the new norm, which means it’s time to mix things up! Here are three tech tools you can use to keep online learning current. Adobe Spark Adobe Spark is a web- and mobile-based tool that allows users to design visual content in the form of posts, videos, and web pages. Adobe Spark has three components: spark post, spark video, and spark page. Spark post creates a visual storyboard that represents what the…
Perhaps the most essential part of learning online is connecting with and encouraging online students. Merely copying and pasting the course content into a learning management system cannot be the extent of online course development. Encouragement can come in many forms, including positive feedback on assignments, emails, phone calls, and video messages. To encourage online learners, teachers can create short video messages that can be used to help students persevere through academic and personal challenges.…
With online learning being the new norm, cheating on online tests has become increasingly worrying for teachers and parents. Even without expensive virtual proctoring tools, however, there are many ways that instructors can use the inherent features within school’s Learning Management System (LMS) to combat cheating during online examinations. Here are a few ideas to decrease cheating on online tests. 1. Create questions that require higher order thinking. Instead of having students respond to questions…
In the wake of stay at home orders and economic collapse, many online students–despite being well versed in Zoom, familiar with the format of online discussions, and already adjusted to learning online–are starting to show strain. Even in the best of times, it is difficult for students to maintain enthusiasm and passion about their learning, but in our era of coronavirus, it is now almost impossible. Compassion in online learning is now more important than…
