Family Engagement
	
Lessons Learned From Virtual Learning During COVID-19

	

Tips for Educators From Families and Educators

Be Flexible

• Provide work options that allow for time flexibility

• Listen to families’ feedback on students’ successes and challenges, and adjust if necessary

• Consider which lessons may be best taught virtually and which require alternative approaches

• Recognize that various family members may be helping students on different days

Hold Group Sessions If Possible • Meet at least once per week
• Provide students with an opportunity to socialize, without educational expectations

• Allow children to see their peers “in school”

Hold Individual Sessions

• Work with students on a one-to-one basis

• Check in with students’ families frequently and consistently

• Reach out in a variety of ways (e.g., phone, texting, email, Skype)

Engage Families to Coordinate Fun Activities • Host a game day
• Hold a virtual cooking event

• Oversee extracurricular and after-school activities

• Provide social time for students and adults (together or separately)

Schedule Ofice Hours

• Allow students and families times to personally reach you

• Offer students and families personal support and connect them with school resources

Use Interactive Activities

• Utilize platforms such as Kahoot, Quizlet Live, Padlet, Popplet

• Use built-in engagement techniques such as chatbox, Q&A, screensharing

• Allow students to give input and to teach parts of the lesson

• Keep things familiar

• Create focused, not “free time activities’” during virtual meeting; avoid busy work

• Check for understanding and engagement during video learning and read-alouds

• Consider different ways in which students can respond to questions (e.g., picture selection, Boomcards)

• Establish goals for lessons and make sure that students can describe the goals in their own way

Think About Scheduling

• Provide flexibility of scheduling; hour-by-hour scheduling may not work in a home atmosphere

• Give multiple options and ideas to consider

• Be empathetic by providing ways for families to think through how to organize their time and resources

• Consider the student; some students may thrive on strict routine, while others may not find this helpful

• Recognize that transitioning from one activity to another can be dificult; consider the sequence of activities

• Note that schedules may look differently from student to student

Communicate With Families

• Establish frequent and consistent communication

• Tell families how they can support students during online lessons

• Discuss the levels of support that a student might need to complete an activity

• Provide the families with expectations of how a student is expected to participate in online learning

Promote Independence of Students With Disabilities

• Teach students with disabilities how to use the computer (e.g., the mouse, touchpad, keyboard)

• Provide guidance on how to access online learning platforms (both for students and families)

• Deliver instruction in accessible chunks with necessary breaks

• Be aware of accessibility concerns

• Ensure that students have a way to communicate in some way during digital learning experiences

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Tom Wolf, Governor

8/2
7/200