I have had so many messages from concerned parents, friends and family asking me ‘what should they whilst they are in self-isolation with your kids’. So I decided to pencil a few notes to help them and others to pass this times as productively as possible.
I am a teacher and have been teaching for 15 years both locally in the Northwest, nationally in London and internationally in the UAE. During these uncertain times of the Coronavirus pandemic not only are you needed to be a parent but you will be the facilitators of the education provisions at home. I know my friends and family have been reaching out to me for help with planning activities and lessons at home.
First and foremost; your child’s teachers will be working very hard and providing lessons through their online platforms. This may include the school website, Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) or Show My Homework. In addition to these, a lot of schools pay subscriptions for online e-learning resources such as Sam’s Learning, My Maths, Twig and EducationCity. The first point of call for parents is to follow the school’s advice and support the school’s plan.
Self-Isolation with your kids
My school will be open to the children of key workers and our most vulnerable students. My teaching peers will be leaving their families to free the strain of child care on our key workers. I began Self Isolation on Thursday 19th March due to falling in the at “risk group” and being a carer for my 70 Year mother. I will be communicating and setting lessons for all my students on Monday, and I spent much of last week having really meaningful conversations with my students on Covid-19 and the effect it’s having on them.
Self-Isolation with your kids is hard but don’t panic, you just need to be organised. With more and more families going into self-isolation, circumstances have allowed the opportunity for you to spend time with your children. Create a weekly timetable with your child for them to follow. Include breaks, lunch and discover the subjects they enjoy and timetable extra time for those.
The structure will help pass the time and will provide a sense of normality for them. Include Computing (bias as I am computing teacher), Maths, English, Science, History, Geography, Languages, RE, PE and any other subjects you or your child is passionate about.
I have collated online resources that you as parents can use in addition to the school provisions. If you have found useful additional resources, feel free to get in touch and I’ll update the list.
Here is a useful link to the Education departments website, to stay up to date with all the latest developments on the coronavirus (COVID-19) – what you need to do.
Here is the are some of the resources:
How to Home School your Kids
How to Home School your children during the lockdown period
How to use YouTube to Home-School your children
BBC BITESIZE
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize
Primary, Secondary and Post-16 with a full selection of subjects. Lessons usually consist of interactive content and a summative quiz. A good useful and interactive resource, for children to work with on a daily basis.
THE SCOUTS
https://www.scouts.org.uk/the-great-indoors
The scouts have released some inspired indoor activity ideas to keep your kids learning new skills and having fun at the same time. These include: building a miniature raft, A storm in a cup and using a camera.
Good luck, be kind and be safe – use the guide below.
A Teacher… Mr Hussain
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