Remote Learning: Differentiation and supporting students with additional needs

Hi everyone,

During the last set of school closures from March to June, I had some students who were struggling with lack of routine and the structure of the school day.

Having chatted to the parents on how best to plan out their remote learning, we agreed on setting targets which came from their assessments and school support plans. For one child, it was working on a specific literacy programme at home daily, for another child it was completing some written work and allowing other written work to be submitted through emails or on Teams.

I then created a plan of work for the week, this outlined the work that had to be completed each day and then a choice board of activities that they could pick and choose from during the week. Parents received this work in an email each week and the children also got a copy on Teams from me so that everyone was informed of the plan for the week.

I saw a Choice Board for projects on A Crucial Week (I think), so I adapted that for home learning. Within the choice board was some SESE that was set for the whole class, SPHE and mindfulness work along with links for art activities and videos on YouTube. I designed the choice board with the individual child in mind, so that I could address their needs in some way at home.

While it took time initially to set targets, it opened up the communication with the parents and supported them to ensure their child engaged at home. Some weeks, the children would send back lots of items from the choice board and some weeks there was limited work returned and that was ok as the parents always kept me informed. Allowing the children to choose from the choice board gave them some responsibility for their own learning at home. Through the set tasks the children got to work on areas they needed the most, without the added pressure of class work that was assigned to everyone.

It can be difficult to plan for the whole class and then address the needs of others who are on in class support or school support. But with effective communication and identifying what the child needs to complete, this will help to reach targets and will help the child to achieve success during this time of remote learning.

If you have any questions on this post, send me a DM

Stay Safe

Aistear Múinteoir

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