Will my child be taught broadly the same curriculum as they would if they were in school?
Our remote learning offer is based on the curriculum we are also teaching in school and follows the outline of our published Sunnymede curriculum and half termly overviews. You can find these on the curriculum pages of this website. However, some adaptations will be needed in some subjects to make content more accessible for home learning and to accommodate changes to staffing in school when managing groups for vulnerable children and those of critical workers. For example, we are using the Oak Academy videos to support our planned curriculum for home learning and those in school which in normal operational times we would not.
We use Google Classroom in all years to deliver our remote learning through online platforms.
All registration and login details for these have previously been sent home. If you are not sure of your details please contact the school office and we can give you the details again.
What will happen during school closure periods?
For KS1 the work is uploaded to Google Classroom for the week with indications of what should be completed on specific days. In Reception tasks are uploaded to Google classroom on a daily basis, with some weekly tasks.
We have posted work to be submitted by the end of the week so that it allows parents flexibility to schedule this around their other commitments but some work should be completed every day . We encourage you to submit work as you complete it so that teachers can comment and feedback throughout the week.
How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?
Our provision is based on the Government guidance which suggests 3 hours of learning each day for primary children, which can be organised in any way which works for individual parents and families. As much of the learning involves screen time it is important that children have breaks built in. If children are completing work in one 3 hour block for example 9-12, we would suggest two 15 minute breaks where children can move around and be active, perhaps outside if possible.
In KS1 we provide 1 hour of English ( which includes phonics, reading, spelling and grammar and writing tasks), 1 hour of Maths and 1 hour of learning in the Foundation Subjects (History, Geography, PE, Music, RE, RHSE, Art). In EYFS there are a range of learning tasks linked to all areas of the EYFS curriculum and including phonics and reading, maths, understanding the world, physical development, expressive and creative aspects of learning. Younger pupils will find it more difficult to sustain learning in long blocks and we therefore suggest that they have shorter blocks spread throughout the day if possible. Some of the learning for Reception will include listening to a story, playing with small world play and play dough to reflect the active learning children would be having in school.
If your child is absent because they have covid and are ill, then we would not expect them to complete this work until they are well enough to do so.
Children also have access to Maths Seeds, Reading Eggs, Oddizzi Geography and Curriculum Visions programmes/websites at any time if they would like to do some additional learning.
Whilst we understand that sharing devices can make it tricky for siblings to complete their work during the school day, please make sure your child stops working in time for them to wind down before going to bed.
Phonics learning is particularly important and we will provide daily phonics learning videos which are in line with our Read Write Inc approach so that children are able to quickly pick this up again when they return to school. This should be done daily.
What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?
We understand that supporting remote learning at home is challenging when parents and carers also have work and family commitments too. There are a number of things you can do to create a good environment for learning at home:
How will my child be taught remotely?
Our decisions are based on evidence that is now being published, by Ofsted and the Education Endowment Foundation, amongst others.
We use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely:
What the research says | What we have done |
Children learning remotely may have reduced concentration. This can be for many reasons - there may be distractions at home, and we know you cannot always directly supervise your child’s learning | Changed the structure of lessons to include short sections, with a mix of listening time and practical activities, to suit what is being learnt. We do not expect children to watch and join in for an extended period. Video clips can be paused whilst a task is completed and then returned to. |
The learning process is the same. Children are learning in a different environment, but their brains still work the same way to acquire and develop new knowledge and skills. | Lessons still include what we know works in the classroom e.g. recapping previous learning, focusing on a clear learning objective, providing examples or models, and having time for children to practise independently. Exactly what happens in each lesson will vary, depending on the subject, topic and learning objective for the lesson |
Keep it simple. Children may not be able to ask for help. | Units of work are planned so they follow a sequence, so children can build on what they already know, and focus on essential learning only. |
Assessment and feedback are essential. Children need information from their teacher that tells them how well they have done and what they need to improve, and this is an area where live interactions can make a difference | Feedback is being provided in a number of ways. This may include uploading answers so pupils can mark their own work; uploading general feedback to a class or group; brief individual marking. Where it has the most impact, teachers will mark uploaded work in depth. Work should be uploaded as it is completed so that teachers can give timely feedback and encouragement. |
Live lessons aren’t always best. Some think that a live lesson is the 'gold standard' of remote education. This isn't necessarily the case. (Ofsted, What's working well in remote education', 11.1.21) The Education Endowment Foundations's research summary states - Teaching quality is more important than how lessons are delivered. Pupils can learn through remote teaching. Ensuring the elements of effective teaching are present (for example clear explanations, scaffolding and feedback) is more important than how or when they are provided. There was no clear difference between teaching in real time ("synchronous teaching") and alternatives ("asynchronous teaching"). (EEF, Rapid Evidence Assessment Distance Learning, 21/4/2020) What is more important is the quality of the curriculum, the sequence of learning within a unit of work, and the planning of learning that children can complete successfully at home
Complications with live learning include:
- Pupils not having access to technology when they need it - many households do not have enough devices for all children - Parents have many commitments, and may not be available when a live lesson is broadcast; it is therefore more useful to have a lesson available to use at any time.
| We do not currently provide live Zoom 'teaching' sessions. We know children are more engaged and their well being is supported if they feel part of their school community, so we provide a daily 30 minute Zoom session where children can see and great each other and their teacher and show some of the learning they are proud of as well as completing some fun challenges. Recorded star of the week assemblies are posted on Friday each week to mirror the usual practice we would have in school and celebrate great learning and the Sunnymede Values of determination, respect, excellent, courage and friendship. We use the Oak Academy recorded lessons in a series as they are developed and presented by specialist teachers and are carefully planned and sequenced to support remote learning. Similarly we use White Rose maths alongside Oak Academy as a resource developed by maths specialists. We know children benefit from the chance to get direct feedback, so as well as the direct comments and feedback in Google Classroom/Tapestry which we encourage parents to share with children, teachers provide teaching points by showing learning tasks that have been completed well within the Zoom sessions – these give feed forward points for children to take with them to the next tasks. We continue to refine our offer and approaches in the light of research and national recommendations.
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Will my child be able to have contact with their teacher during home learning?
Children can upload work to the Google classroom and teachers will give feedback online. The children in school will not take part in this as they will be having their lessons during this time. We will also make a phone call home if there has not been much work posted to see if we can help with any issues that are arising.
The feedback comments to children are also a form of contact and we ask parents/carers to share these with their child so that they can develop their learning and celebrate their achievements together. The class teacher as well as the TA will comment and feedback on work so that your child still feels part of the whole class team.
In the even that lessons need to be delivered by Zoom the folllowing protocol will apply:
Protocol for daily Zoom sessions: Please make sure that both you and your child are aware of them.
Please make sure that your screen login is with the child’s name so that we can see who we admit to the classroom.
● An adult must be present in the house during the video call and must confirm their presence at the beginning of the video call before leaving their child to engage in the video meet.
● These video meets have been designed to provide your child with the opportunity to interact with their peers and teacher in a virtual live environment. Adults are reminded, it is not an opportunity for you to engage on the video call and speak with your child's teacher. As is the protocol, all questions for your child's teacher must be submitted either through the Google Classroom/Tapestry or by contacting the School Office.
● Join the Zoom at the allocated time only
● The meets are optional, but we would like every child to attend at least one meeting each week. If we do not see your child at least once we will make a home telephone call to engage with the child and see if there is anything we can help with.
● Your child will also have the option to attend via audio only should they not wish to have their camera on. Should this be the case we will make sure to speak to your child directly.
● The door to the room where your child is carrying out the video call must be left open for the duration of the meet.
● The video call must take place in an appropriate environment which safeguards the child’s privacy, for example; kitchen/ lounge/ dining room with a wall or similar area presented as a background. Children should not join Zoom calls from their beds.
● Your child should be appropriately dressed for the video call as should anyone else in the household (ie dressed in daytime clothes, not underwear or pyjamas)
● Language must be professional and appropriate, including any family members in the background.
● Once the video call has finished, you must ensure that the camera has been disconnected and covered. Please ensure you child/you end the call promptly once the meeting finishes.
● During the video call your child may only use the platform that the school provides (Zoom).
● It is not permitted to make any recordings or take photos during these video calls.
By joining the Zoom call you are agreeing to abide by these rules for your child and any adults in the house.
How will the teacher know what my child has been learning?
In Google Classroom we ask parents to photograph or video the work children have been doing and upload (or Turn In/Submit) the work to the platform. Teachers will look at the work uploaded throughout the week and give feedback and encouragement. Below you can find a short video tutorial on how to upload work to Google Classroom using a smartphone.
Each week there will be assignments set with work to submit. Our expectation is that we should see at least one piece of learning in English, Maths and foundation subject each week. There are a range of other learning opportunities which do not need to be submitted, though some parents like to video their child doing them and submit those too.
How will you assess my child’s work and progress?
Feedback can take many forms and may not always mean extensive written comments for individual children. Our approach is as follows:
Some learning, for example the daily phonics session, is not turned in. We may arrange some short assessments as part of the daily Zoom or separately with small groups. Videos from parents of children reading phonemes and words may also be requested.
How will you work with me to help my child who needs additional support from adults at home to access remote education?
Children with an EHCP will be prioritised and the Senco will be in regular contact to provide support and resources so that the child can continue key aspects of their plan at home and also discuss how to adapt tasks. For example, activities to support sensory needs, finger gym tasks, useful websites, visuals. In addition the class teacher and/or TA may arrange for a short 'phone call each week to keep in touch with the child and parent.
How can I ask the teacher questions?
Our Google classrooom remote learning platform has the facility to communicate with the teacher in-built. The teachers will check posts daily and respond. Please bear in mind that most of our teachers are also teaching during the day and so this may not occur until after the end of the school day. If you have an urgent query or request please email: office@sunnymede-inf.essex.sch.uk or telephone the school office 01277 624592.