Remote Education
Online/Blended Learning
Remote Learning Lead: Mr Hyland
Remote Learning Y1 – Y6: full lockdown
Since lockdown 1, West Coker Primary School and all its staff have been working hard to ensure that MS Teams is up and running and ready to support our blended learning offer. Staff have undergone enhanced training and pupils have been using the system in the Autumn Term to access some of their work, which has developed their understanding and confidence.
Following county guidance, and due to varying family circumstances, we will offer self-contained lessons during periods of home learning. We believe this gives families who may work or who may share a device the flexibility across the week to support their children in their learning.
We will offer KS1 3 hours of daily learning and KS2 4 hours. Alongside this, we also offer access to many school subscriptions such as BugClub and TTRS. We hope as our provision evolves we will also include access to other online resources. If you need support accessing any of these, please either comment in your child’s private channel or contact the school office.
During the day, the teachers will be marking and preparing the following day’s lessons as well as being available online between 9:00 and 3:00 to answer any queries or questions. They will be giving feedback to Maths and English work that is uploaded/handed in and will often comment on topic activities. TAs, if not supporting key worker children in school, will also be able to offer support. If you do need to contact your child’s teacher, please in the first instance, send a message in their private channel on Teams.
A suggested timetable is available through our blended learning policy. For those in KS1, we will be setting 3 hours of work and those in KS2 will access 4 hours of online work. The self-contained lessons will be supported by a range of activities including worksheets, written direction, web links and games.
Remote Learning YR: full lockdown
During lock down, Year R will access their online learning through Teams. Daily phonics, writing, maths and topic work will be set. There will also be links to other online learning and stories read by staff.
Parents are encouraged to upload photographic evidence of their child’s learning and this will be commented on by our teachers.
Technology
We understand that not all homes have the technological requirements to access MS Teams. We have been told that Teams can be accessed through a PlayStation or an Xbox.
We have sent out the instructions on how to log in to your child’s MS Teams accounts, for anyone who needs a reminder it can be found below. If you have forgotten your child’s login details then please do contact the school office, this can be easily reset or forwarded on.
If you are finding it difficult to access the system on your current device, or if you have a number of children all needing a device, please do contact the school office. We have some devices issued by the DfE, which we can loan to individual families who need them.
SEND
In the event of lockdown, Mrs Leeson – SENDCO – will continue to monitor the provision of our SEND children. All children will be signposted to the work most appropriate to their level, additional resources may also be available to loan. If you wish to contact her, please do so through the school office.
Key Worker and Vulnerable children
During full lockdown, we will be providing daily schooling for key worker children and those children classed as vulnerable.
If you feel you qualify for Key Worker status, and there is not an adult at home, please contact the office in the first instance.
Self-Isolation – All Children
If school is open to all children but you find yourself having to self-isolate, a 2-week pack of work will be emailed to you. This pack will involve a daily maths, English and topic lesson with additional reading, spelling and times tables (reading, phonics, writing, maths and topic for Year R). As with full lockdown, there is an expectation of 3 hours work for KS1 and 4 hours work for KS2.
Once completed, the pack can be brought back into school for marking when isolation ends.
West Coker Primary School Remote Learning – Frequently Asked Questions
This information is intended to provide clarity and transparency to pupils and parents or carers about what to expect from remote education where national or local restrictions require entire cohorts (or bubbles) to remain at home. For details of what to expect where individual pupils are self-isolating, please see the final section of this page.
What is taught to pupils at home?
A pupil’s first day or two of being educated remotely might look different from our standard approach, while we take all necessary actions to prepare for a longer period of remote teaching.
What should my child expect from immediate remote education in the first day or two of pupils being sent home?
As per the blended learning policy, teachers will have 24-48 hours to set up their home learning provision depending on the circumstances. During this time the children will have access to our online subscriptions such as Accelerated Reader, TimesTablesRockStars (TTRS), and Bug Club. Further information to generic online resources may also be emailed.
Following the first few days of remote education, will my child be taught broadly the same curriculum as they would if they were in school?
Once established, the children will continue to access the same curriculum as they would in school. The lessons will be part of a series of lessons and each one building on the previous. Wherever possible the curriculum will remain the same as if in school, however some adaptions in some subjects may need to be made, for example any activities that require considerable or specific resources.
Once established, the children will continue to access the same curriculum as they would in school. The lessons will be part of a series of lessons and each one building on the previous. Wherever possible the curriculum will remain the same as if in school, however some adaptions in some subjects may need to be made, for example any activities that require considerable or specific resources.
It is important that the children access the lessons each day as they will be part of a series and not taught in isolation.
How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?
If work is completed to the same standard as in school, we expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) will take pupils broadly the following number of hours each day:
Key Stage 1 |
3 hours – this may be slightly less for the younger children |
Key Stage 2 |
4 hours – this might be slightly more for the older children or where optional extension activities are being set. |
How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?
All children in Years will access their online learning through Microsoft Teams, although children in Reception or Year 1 will also be set phonics learning and activities through BugClub. During times of non-lockdown. All children have an account, if you need additional instructions or a password reset them please contact the office.
If my child does not have digital or online access at home, how will you support them to access remote education?
We recognise that some pupils may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those pupils to access remote education:
We recognise that some pupils may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those pupils to access remote education:
- We have a number of loan laptops and iPads. If you have more than one child or you are struggling with your current technology then please do contact the office as we are able to consider all requests.
- Our devices come with a loan and user agreement. These need to be signed before you are able to take the device home.
- All our devices have been configured for safe home usage. They should only be used for school work and should be returned in the same condition as were received.
- There may be some government schemes we can access, dependent on availability, to support wifi/data usage.
- Our teachers carefully plan each lesson to ensure that most do not involve printing materials. However, this is difficult with younger children, who may need more support. Work can be hand written, typed or printed depending on circumstances, and photographs of work can be ‘handed in’ when tasks are completed.
How will my child be taught remotely?
Depending on key stage and on subject being taught, we use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely:
- Pre arranged, self-contained lessons – for English, Maths and topic, teachers will group all the required resources into an assignment. This may contain videos, activities and worksheets. These will be accessed through Teams. These are invaluable to the children and their learning as this is where the learning takes place.
- Forms – these may be used within MS Teams for the children to record their work
- Bug Club – phonics, reading and reading comprehension for KS2
- Time Tables Rock Stars – Maths for KS2
What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?
It is expected that children engage with all learning whilst at home. We understand that each family has different circumstances in terms of commitment to paid work and siblings within the house. Over the week, it is expected that the work set is completed but this can be done at each family’s own rate.
It is inevitable that the younger children will need support to access their learning, although independence should be encouraged where appropriate. The older children have had Teams modelled to them throughout the Autumn Term and should be able to access their work independently.
How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?
Work will be checked on a daily basis. Class teachers will monitor who is accessing what work and who is handing in what work. Feedback will be given on all work that is handed in.
If the class teacher has concerns over a child’s engagement, they will in the first instance contact the child via Teams and the child’s private channel. If the disengagement persists, the child will be raised at the weekly SLT check-in and phone calls home may be actioned. Families may also be referred to the Pastoral team should it be necessary.
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. For example, whole-class feedback or quizzes marked automatically via digital platforms are also valid and effective methods, amongst many others. English and maths will be marked and feedback on a daily basis, topic will be marked where appropriate. Our approach to feeding back on pupil work is as follows:
- Feedback through a child’s private channel on individual pieces of work
- Whole class feedback on the General channel
- Marking of quizzes and forms
- Next steps and asking for corrections 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?
We recognise that some pupils, for example some pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), may not be able to access remote education without support from adults at home. We acknowledge the difficulties this may place on families, and we will work with parents and carers to support those pupils in the following ways:
- Ensuring your child accesses the correct curriculum
- Ensuring you have the physical resources needed to support your child
- Offering your child a place in school if we jointly believe it is in their best interests.
- Regular check-ins with the SENDCo