Remote Education Provision

Information for Parents

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 document.

The remote curriculum: What is taught to pupils at home?

A pupil’s first day or two of being educated remotely might look a little 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?

On Day 1, children will be expected to begin remote learning by accessing: Timestable Rockstars/Numbots and Lexia.

On Day 1, we will also send out your child’s Showbie account details. Showbie will allow your child access work online from day 2. 

On Day 2, children will be able to log into their personal Showbie Remote Learning Platform account and access work set by the class teacher. Children will be able to access daily work which covers Maths, writing, reading, spelling/phonics/SPAG and at least one other curriculum area.

Following the first few days of remote education, will my child be taught broadly the same curriculum as if they were in school?

Our remote education is of a high quality and aligns as closely as possible with the in school provision. The class teachers will set work across all areas of the curriculum. This will include maths, writing, reading, spelling/phonics/SPAG and other curriculum areas. Teachers will provide pre-recorded material to teach new concepts and will ensure learning is carefully sequenced.

Remote teaching and study time each day

How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?

We recommend that when children are learning from home, they try to keep to a school routine when possible:

AM -   Phonics or spelling or/and guided reading

           English activity

           Maths activity

           Numbots (EYFS and KS1) and Timestable Rockstars (KS2)

           Lexia (in KS1 and some children in KS2)

PM - Other curriculum areas

         Independent reading or reading with an adult

When activities are set on Showbie, teachers will include an approximate length for the activity so families know how long an activity can be expected to take.

It is recommended that children take breaks between different activities and that parents manage a child’s day in the best way to suit their child and home situation.

The amount of remote education provided will be, as a minimum:

Key Stage 1: 3 hours a day average across the cohort, with less for younger children

Key Stage 2: 4 hours a day

Accessing remote education

How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?

Pupils will access online remote education via the Showbie learning platform. Children in year 5 and 6 should be aware of their login details as they access the Showbie online platform at home and in school on a daily basis. Children in years 1-4, will have used Showbie in school for subjects like Computing, so they should have enough experience to access their work. Parents in EYFS, should have already accessed Showbie at home.  

Parents and carers will be given guidance about how to use the platform and additional support will be provided by email or phone call if needed.

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 will use government guidelines and the information gathered from families through previous questionnaires, to identify and contact families who would benefit from access to a school device.  Where possible, the school will provide a device (laptop or tablet) that enables internet connection as appropriate.

Devices will be set up by school and distributed to parents once a school agreement has been signed.

Parents and carers can contact school to discuss the provision of devices.

School can also be contacted to ask for support with access at home and we will provide our best to provide technical support and guidance in the best way we can.

School will provide printed materials if remote education cannot be accessed at home via SeeSaw. Packs of work will be put together weekly and can be collected from school or posted if required. Work can be returned to school each week when the new work is collected and work can then be marked by teachers and feedback provided.

How will my child be taught remotely?

All pupils will have access to high quality education when working remotely. At Westerhope we will:

• provide recorded teaching which will include videos and voice recordings
• provide access to online learning APPs and websites – Numbots, Timestable Rockstars and Lexia
• utilise high quality websites to support the teaching of a variety of curriculum areas
• provide quality printable resources and worksheets

Lessons will be adapted to meet the needs of all children including those with special educational needs.

Class teachers can be contacted via Showbie and a member of the senior leadership team will be available to contact at school if parents or carers need to further discuss remote learning or need additional support.

Engagement and feedback

What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?

There is an expectation that pupils engage with remote learning each day. Pupils are expected to access all daily lessons and complete as much as is possible in the day. Once task are completed they should be uploaded on Showbie.

We are aware that remote learning at home can be very challenging especially when there are often siblings or families trying to work from home. We ask that parents try to support their children when possible throughout the day and if unsure as to how best to do this for different lessons, message teachers on Showbie and they will give ideas and strategies to help.

We recommend that parents and carers establish a routine at home (as suggested earlier in this document) so the children quickly adapt to remote learning and know what to expect each day. If learning cannot be completed each day, lessons should be completed in order even if they cannot all be finished.

How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?

Teachers will check pupil engagement and respond to children’s posts and comments during normal school hours, Monday to Friday.

If children have not uploaded work or engaged with Showbie within the first three days, class teachers will phone families to offer support.  If lack of engagement continues, teachers or the Deputy Head Teacher responsible for remote learning will contact families again to offer further guidance and support.

Each class teacher will keep a record of pupil’s engagement. All communication with families about remote learning will be logged on CPOMS and followed up by the Deputy Head as needed.

We will always try to make contact by phone first then email if needed. Parents and carers can always contact teachers via Showbie or telephone the school office for support or guidance.

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. Our approach to feeding back on pupil work is as follows.

Teachers will provide feedback on work which is submitted via Showbie. Specific feedback may be given on areas to develop, corrections to be made and on the standard of the work. When appropriate, teachers will provide further tasks and challenges.

Teachers are not required to attempt to reproduce in written form the verbal feedback that pupils would be given during typical classroom teaching. However they may provide voice notes to address any misconceptions.

Additional support for pupils with particular needs

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:

Teachers will ensure lessons are inclusive for all pupils and can be adapted to account for the needs of disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND.

Different lessons may be posted for different groups of children depending on their needs, especially in phonics.

‘Shooting Stars’ children in KS2 will have different lessons provided which are in line with what they would have been learning in school.

For children with SEND who find remote learning difficult, they can request printed materials as an alternative which can be collected from school. The SENCO will provide additional guidance and support when requested.

When providing remote learning for children in EYFS and Year 1, teachers are mindful of presenting learning so it is easily accessible and user friendly for the children of such a young age. There will be more teaching videos to support the children; stories read aloud and supporting work sheets and suggested practical activities to support the children’s learning.

Remote education for self-isolating pupils

Where individual pupils need to self-isolate but the majority of their peer group remains in school, how remote education is provided will likely differ from the approach for whole school groups. This is due to the challenges of teaching pupils both at home and in school.

If my child is not in school because they are self-isolating, how will their remote education differ from the approaches described above?

For those pupils self-isolating, remote learning will take a similar format to that stated above. On the first day of isolation the children will be able to access Numbots, Timestable Rockstars and Lexia (if they have access).

On the second day onwards, pupils will be able to access Showbie and will be sent daily activities for the duration of their time away from school.

Teachers will acknowledge comments and provide feedback by the end of each working day.