Welcome back to Term 2!
Our term has started but things are going to look a little different for a while. Read more about what distance learning will look like and what might be happening next at Southbridge School.
As you all know, our school holidays were brought forward so that they happened within the 4 week lockdown period. Now they are over Term 2 has officially started while we are still remaining in lockdown throughout the country.
This means all schools are open for distance learning instruction and our teachers will be working offsite.
Our expectations for learning from home
In regards to Government expectations, there are no set guidelines which is important to note as there is a huge variance in what school children will be able to do in regards to a distance learning programme. Obviously we have children of all different ages at home, all different levels, needing different support. On top of that, some children have a device to use, are capable and confident using it and other homes don’t have any devices or internet. And finally, as you are finding, many homes may have 1-2 working parents as well, making supervision difficult so there have never been any set expectations around what amount of school work should be completed or how many hours per day/week children should be learning at home for. As for the position or expectations our school is taking, it is all about empowering our parents and guardians to make the best decision for their children during this time. You can pick and choose from the learning tasks our teachers have prepared. You can decide how much time they spend online or offline and ultimately, the priority for us all should be ensuring the wellbeing of tamariki during these uncertain times. Please don’t feel pressured in any way to do set tasks or set hours - our teachers are here to help if needed but you decide what is possible and what works best for you and your children in your own home.
What resources are there to help us with distance learning from home
The Ministry of Education recently launched Learning from home and Ki te Ao Mārama, two new websites to support teachers, learners, parents and whānau so that learning for children and young people can continue.
The websites include resources for parents and whānau, teachers and leaders. Resources span the learning pathway from early learning through to senior secondary, and more resources will be added as they’re developed.
The information and resources are available at https://www.learningfromhome.govt.nz/ and https://www.kauwhatareo.govt.nz/ki-te-ao-marama/
More resources will be added as they’re developed. Hard copy packs are being sent out now to learners and whānau who don’t have connectivity at home or who prefer their children to work offline. We have requested additional packs for many of our junior roopu students if they are available.
We will be supporting student learning from your home in the following ways:
we have sent children home with some of their key books and pencil cases
our teachers will email every family and/or senior student each week to check-in to see how you are doing and/or outline possible learning activities for the week
teachers have provided suggestions for online and offline learning tasks
parents and caregivers can contact the classroom teacher at any time via their email address if there are any issues for their child or myself personally if you prefer
we have direct links to specific learning sites and documents appropriate to each Community below and on our website
COM 1
Google Classroom - private to the students in Com 1 & they need to log into this with their Southbridge Google accounts
Home Learning Google Site - Community 1
COM 2
Google Classroom - private to the students in Com 2 & they need to log into this with their Southbridge Google accounts
Home Learning Google Site - Community 2
COM 3
Home Learning Google Site - Community 3
COM 4
Home Learning Google Site - Community 4
COM 6
Home Learning Google Site - Community 6
COM 7
Check out the amazing 'Stay at Home Care Package' resource attached as a PDF below from Big Life Journal.
Offline Home Learning Options
Reading
READ READ READ…
Read on your own, read to someone else, have someone read to you
Read daily - from newspaper, magazines, books etc…
Play a game or board game that incorporates reading e.g Scrabble, Banagrams, Boggle
Make word chains - Have you 3-8 letters depending on your child and whether you work on beginning, end, middle or all three. E.g. s b a e t p. Pet change pet to bet, Change bet to bat, Change bat to sat, Change sat to sap
Hangman – This is a great game to get the kids thinking about words. It can be one word or a full sentence.
Uno and Stickers – I don’t know any household that doesn’t have this game but a normal deck of cards would work too. Find out what sound your child is working on and you write them on the sticker/labels. Every time the child plays a card they need to read the word and play the game as normal.
Writing
Keep a diary/journal
Free writing
Make up your own recipe, write down instructions for a family member to follow
Write clues for someone else to do a treasure hunt
Make a presentation/poster about your favourite food, sport, hobby, country, animal
Write a new ending to your favourite book
Play hangman
Write a poem, a song or rap to perform to someone else
Maths
Work on telling both digital and analogue time
Practise basic facts
Learn 2, 5, and 10 x tables off by heart if in the junior school or all the tables if in the senior school
Do some baking
Play games, cards or board games that incorporate maths e.g. noughts & crosses, Buzz
Positive Education
Practise Mindfulness - Smiling Minds, Mindful colouring, Meditation
Help out on the farm or in the garden
Make a kindness card to someone
Give your family compliments
Write 5 things you are grateful for
Do some exercise outside
Find out what ‘growth mindset’ means
Do 5 random acts of kindness
Write a letter of gratitude to somebody
Draw a picture to show what makes you happy
Write down 5 nice things your friends would say about you and 5 things you like about yourself
Play a card game or a board game with your family
Knit something or do something crafty!
Do a puzzle
Build a fort or treehouse, create with blocks or lego
Try out doing Yoga as a family
Start a ‘Pay it Forward’ movement in your home
Help out with the chores - do it before you get asked to do it!
Home learning television
The MoE have been working with teachers and leaders, alongside staff from ERO and Te Kura to develop Home Learning TV | Papa Kāinga TV, on TVNZ, which will run from 9am to 3pm on school days on TVNZ2+1 and Sky channel 502. Some lessons will also be available on TVNZ On Demand. This starts on Wednesday 15th April. There will be content for parents and whānau with preschool children and tamariki, and lessons for those aged 5 to 15 years of age will cover a broad curriculum that includes movement, music, physical education, wellbeing, numeracy, literacy and science through an integrated approach to curriculum. There’s already a lot of good education video content available, and the Ministry will be working with experts and educators to refine and further develop it.
They have also been working with Māori Television to make distance learning accessible for all ākonga and whānau. The programmes on Māori Television are for reo Māori learners of all ages, with a focus on those who are aged 0-18, covering ākonga in kōhungahunga (early learning), kura tuatahi (primary) and wharekura (secondary).
Remember, what kids need right now is to feel comforted and loved. To feel like it’s all going to be ok. Have some fun as a family, learning together while maintaining a sense of calm and safety.
What happens next?
Ultimately the government will make the decision about when we will come out of Alert Level 4, this is not a BoT or leadership decision. For now, all I can provide is some possible scenarios... for example, if we do move out of Alert Level 4 after 4 weeks of lockdown, you could expect that to possibly happen around Thursday 23rd April. If we moved to Alert Level 3, I would imagine schools might be able to then open, but it might be a staggered start, perhaps starting with the children of essential workers before opening for all students. I believe we will have some decisions made by the Government next week and then we will inform our community immediately with details of our staged return to school. We will need to take 1-2 days to give our school a thorough clean and undertake health and safety check as well as some time as a staff to prepare all classrooms. We are excited and keen to get our Southbridge School family back together again and will be working super hard to ensure it happens as quickly as possible.
In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me or your child's teacher, we are here to help. Take care, stay healthy and keep smiling - kia kaha!
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