Help me give my students Waiting is Not Easy, Pete the Cat's Groovy Bake Sale and Kindergarten Here I come so each student can have a book to read along with.
Our school district closed on March 16th due to the pandemic. While we were all cautiously optimistic that we would be able to return to school because our school year typically runs until the end of June, we found out last week that we will not be returning. This was an emotional blow not only for the students but the teachers as well. It is particularly difficult because my students will all be going to different schools next year so there is not real sense of closure for their current school year.
My 20 preschoolers and myself are trying desperately to keep our classroom connection going despite the distance between us.
We do have an online learning platform for our students, but not all of the students are able to participate daily if at all. We have been utilizing remote group phone calls for show and tell and an opportunity for the students to say hello to each other. I would like to be able to offer some creative ways to engage my students in the group calls but that means my students need to have the same materials at home as if we were in class.
My Project
A big part of learning in preschool is social/emotional learning. Distance learning has taken a lot of that experience away for my students. I am trying to incorporate creative ways to encourage all of the students to participate during this time of distance learning. One of the ways is to do a weekly story utilizing group phone/video calls. Some of the students engage but for some others it is hard - they do not see the pictures that well, can't hear that well, etc. I thought it would be great if each of my students were able to follow along with the story by having their very own books in their hands. This, I believe, will also promote more engagement during this time (more students logging in to participate).
Read aloud time has always been important to encourage students to listen, take turns, practice raising their hands, and voice their opinions and consider the opinions of others.
All of these are social/emotional learning skills that once learned, can become an asset for the student as a they progress through school and outside of school as well. I would really love the ability to give them the hands-on experience of holding the books, following/reading along with the rest of the class, and feeling that they have even more of a connection with myself and their friends during this time. The parents will then be able to read the stories to the students as well.
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