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BSD Distance Learning Guidance Document (Phase 2)
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This is a living document with communication, recommendations, and resources to support teaching and learning during the days of school closure.

 AIM: Maintaining personal connections with students through distance learning lessons

Table of Contents:

Introduction

It is important to understand that teaching and learning online involves more than just uploading files and video links to a learning management system or platform. Teaching and learning from a distance requires a different approach. As we look to educators who have taught from an online platform we have found that there are some specific pedagogies and practices that help make distance teaching and learning effective and valuable while still maintaining personal connections.

Maintaining connections with our students and families during this time is essential for success. For many of our students, this will be their first experience having to manage their own learning through self-regulation, time management, and organization. Part of a quality distance teaching and learning program is supporting families and students in developing the skills and habits necessary to be successful during this unprecedented time.  This document is to be used as a guide for navigating pedagogies, practices, and partnerships that are key to distance teaching and learning.


Guidelines and Best Practices

Below are several strategies that can help teachers keep students engaged while learning remotely:

Accessibility & Equity -

It is important to work toward removing barriers and ensuring the accessibility of resources for all students. Follow the links below to find information and resources for students with IEPs or 504 plans, English learners, along with resources for social/emotional support and or instruction.

Content Resources

Below are programs and resources for planning, delivering, and implementing distance teaching and learning: some of these are stand-alone programs and others are designed to supplement the delivery of district curriculum.

Major Programs

Zoom Conferencing

Video conference software that allows participants to share screens, files, breakout rooms, and record meetings.

Zoom Tutorials

Breakout Room Tutorial and Directions for Enabling Breakout Rooms

Google Classroom

Web service designed to simplify creating, distributing, and grading assignments and streamline the process of sharing files between teachers and students.

Seesaw

A platform for student engagement that inspires the use of creative tools to take pictures, draw, record videos and more to capture learning in a portfolio.

Seesaw Tutorials

Minor Programs

AR - Accelerated Reader

A program used to monitor reading practice and progress through reading and assessment.

Free Access to AR's COMPLETE library of books!

Epic Books

An online children's subscription book service offering access to over 40,000 books and chapter books for children ages 12 and under. Free to parents until the end of June.

Newsela

Newsela is a database of current events stories for classroom use. Stories are both student-friendly and accessible in different formats by reading level.

Newsela Overview help video

Lexia Learning

A platform to address the development of oral language, reading, spelling, and writing skills for students. Students develop fundamental reading skills and receive personalized instruction. Programs include Core5, PowerUp, or Rapid

Lexia Resources

ST Math

A visual math program that builds a deep conceptual understanding of math through rigorous learning and creative problem solving.

Login Video

Nearpod

A platform used to create lessons that can contain quizzes, polls, videos, images, drawing-boards, web content, etc. Teachers can create their own or access over 7K pre-made lessons.

Nearpod Tutorials

Highlight of Key Features

Nearpod Basics

OverDrive

A free service offered by the district that allows you to borrow digital content.

Explain Everything

An application where students work collaboratively to share their learning by creating presentations with video, notation, and audio recording. 

Explain Everything Tutorials

Explain Everything Basics

Creative Ways to Use EE

Additional Programs & Resources

Khan Academy

A non-profit educational organization that provides free video tutorials and interactive exercises.

Photo Booth

A software application for taking photos and videos with an iSight camera. Recording yourself with Photo Booth

Upload Videos

Help videos on how to upload your teacher created videos to YouTube.

Uploading videos to Youtube

Approving YouTube Videos for Students

Screen Recording

Help videos on how to record your screen with MacBook or iPad.

Screen Recording on a MacBook

Flipgrid

A website that allows teachers to create "grids" to facilitate video discussions. Each grid is like a message board where teachers can pose questions, called "topics," and students can post video responses.

Flipgrid Walk-through

Audible

A platform that offers audiobooks in multiple languages for all ages.

Padlet

A platform to post images, work, articles, resources; students/ teachers can comment. discuss, etc.

Tech Help

Adapted from Riverside County Office of Education, State Board of Education & Sanger Unified School District