uSING tECHNOLOGY TO bUILD RELATIONSHIPS and support Young Children's learning during the pandemic

Lucy Brock Child Development lab Program

Lucy Brock Child Development Lab Program (LBCDLP) is a lab school operated by the Department of Family and Child Studies, located in the Reich College of Education at Appalachian State University. Our school serves as a model program providing early care and education to children birth-5 years in the mountains of North Carolina. LBCDLP is also a professional preparation site for individuals wanting to work with young children and their families. As a university lab school, we model evidence-based practices in the field of early childhood education and develop new and innovative practices to elevate current definitions of best practice. To learn more about our school you can visit our website or enjoy a virtual tour in this video.

The pandemic

In March of 2020, we temporarily closed our doors in response to a state-wide stay-at-home order. Although we could no longer welcome children and families into our school, our responsibility to serve them was even greater considering the challenges they were facing due to the pandemic. Children were missing their teachers and peers. Many families were juggling care for their children, employment, and other responsibilities in ways they never anticipated. We missed the children in our care and the families we saw daily. It was our challenge to think about how we could engage children and families in innovative, yet developmentally appropriate ways while living in a pandemic.

When our school reopened a few months later with new health and safety protocols in place, only children and personnel were permitted inside the school. It was critical for us to help prepare children and families for this transition after being away for so long. In the space of the school, it was our goal that children didn't feel the stress of the pandemic while here. We wanted them to feel safe and secure in the learning environment but realized that a good deal of this work would need to take place while children were at home. We thought very carefully about an intentional response.

our response

Like most early care and education programs, COVID-19 forced us to think about how to engage with children and families in new, yet meaningful ways. In response to these new and unprecedented challenges, teachers at LBCDLP began using technology to stay connected to children and families as well as provide much-needed resources. When children returned to school, technology became our lifeline to keep us connected with families since they were no longer able to meet with teachers face-to-face.

The purpose of this resource is to share the lessons we learned regarding the use of technology during the pandemic. We hope this resource can be used by other early care and education programs to discover ways technology can be used to stay connected with children and families. Although the strategies described here were implemented in response to the pandemic, we believe they can be used as ongoing approaches to build and maintain relationships with children and families.

5 strategies for using technology to bUILD RELATIONSHIPS and support Young Children's learning during the pandemic

1. Use videos to support families and children during the pandemic and in their return to school.

2. Create pedagogical documentation to make children's routines and learning visible at school.

3. Bridge learning from home to school using videos and pedagogical documentation.

4. Share electronic resources with families to support children's learning at home.

5. Have virtual group times.

In the following sections, we elaborate on these strategies as well as provide examples that illustrate their use with children and families at the LBCDLP.

1. Use videos to support families and children during the pandemic and in their return to school.

The relationships between children, families, and teachers lay the foundation for creating supportive learning environments. Researchers have found that high quality relationships between children and teachers strengthens all aspects of development including academic skills, social-emotional development, and executive function (Baker, 2006; Hamre & Pianta, 2001). We knew we had a responsibility to continue nurturing these relationships during the pandemic and like most early care and education programs, we wanted to keep in touch with our families and provide support while we complied with the stay-at-home order.

We found videos created a wonderful opportunity for children and families to stay connected with their teachers. Teachers created many types of videos for a variety of purposes. For example, they created videos of storytimes that families could share with children in their home. Children loved to see their teachers read some of their favorite books and it helped them feel connected when the pandemic was keeping them apart. They shared videos of teachers engaged in everyday activities such as taking walks around their neighborhood and they even captured a trip to a local horse farm. We employed this strategy to keep connected to our families when we couldn't be in the same space every day. When it was time to return to school, we made videos to share with families about the procedure to come back into the space with enhanced safety precautions. Click on the links embedded in the text to see some examples.

"The resources also helped inspire ideas for us to continue with our kids. For example, when Ms. Cassandra and Ms. Kerstin created a video in which they acted out Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Henry decided he wanted to make one, too, which then led us to eventually make one for Big Dog, Little Dog, and much later, a family version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. It helped us see the ways in which we could keep exploring with our kids' interests."

Mom of Henry, 5 & Walter, 2

2. Create pedagogical documentation to make children's routines and learning visible.

Pedagogical documentation provides a means to make children's routines and learning visible. Pedagogical documentation is a collaborative process between adults and children by which concrete examples of an individual child's thinking are observed, analyzed, interpreted, and then applied to extend the child's learning (Sills-Busio, 2021). Through these narratives, schools can show the competence and capability of children, but can also use documentation as a way for families to understand how children might see the space and how learning is supported. We used pedagogical documentation to help families see the learning space when they couldn't be in the classroom because of COVID-19 safety protocols. We wanted families to see what the children were engaging with. We also used documentation as a strategy to welcome new children to our school. Click on the links embedded in the text to see our examples.

3. Bridge learning from home to school using videos and pedagogical documentation.

Partnerships between families and schools promote positive outcomes for children of all abilities and in all areas of development (Arndt & McGuire-Schwartz, 2008; Ball,2006). For example, Waanders, Mendez, and Downer, (2007) and others found that family involvement can “nurture cognitive and emotional resilience” (Morrison, Storrey, & Zheng, 2015, p. 33). Moreover, high-quality family engagement is beneficial to children and families from diverse populations (Kim, 2002; Macon, 1999). We recognized that families would be spending large amounts of time with their children and wanted to help families see the value of everyday moments for learning. We asked families to create videos with children completing everyday experiences to share with us. A few families did and teachers wrote documentation based on the family video. This helped our families see that everyday experiences of children provided opportunities to learn about the world around them and show how learning experiences at home can meet standards like the North Carolina Foundations for Early Learning and Development.

4. Share electronic resources with families to support children's learning at home.

To build on our efforts to engage families in the education of their children, we shared electronic resources with the families enrolled in our program. This turned into a University wide resource for the greater community. We created and researched the family resources represented in this site as well as others to support learning in the home environment. It was important to us to give families usable resources that didn't overwhelm or add more stress to their already-altered lives. Some families were very honest that they didn't need access to the resources and we understood. However, others loved what we were sending and we able to use them to build learning experiences at home.

"We are so grateful for these resources. We can see the time and effort your teachers have put in to help us provide learning experiences at home. As a teacher, I don't want to see my child lose what she has learned the past year."

-Mom of Cora, 3

5. Have virtual group times.

We recognize that community is an important aspect of early care and education settings. We were concerned children and families would miss the routine of going to school and spending time with friends. In an effort to mitigate the effects of not seeing friends and not having social experiences, we created virtual group times for children aged two and up. We chose to use a virtual meeting platform that is easy to navigate and that most people could access. We also went into the process knowing that it most likely would be chaotic. Children were so excited to see their friends and just like an in- person group times, many children wanted to speak at the same time. This was understandable as we realized they truly missed talking to their friends. For many of them, it was the first time they had seen another child in weeks. The first couple of times teachers facilitated conversations between children and helped children learn the etiquette of electronic meetings. After we practiced, the teachers were able to engage the children in learning games. Teachers would facilitate scavenger hunts prompting children to "find something blue" or "find a circle in your house." Watch this video to see how one of our master teachers, Ms. Jennifer, made the transition to facilitate virtual group times as well as providing developmentally appropriate learning experiences using technology.

" Kenzlie went over the television and rubbed Ms. Cassandra's face. She said, 'I miss you, Sandra.' I was so thankful that she was able to be with her teachers and friends again. The group time meeting was so important for her. We didn't realize how much she missed school."

-Mom of Kenzlie, 2

"We were a little overwhelmed at the thought of keeping Henry occupied 24/7. Plus, he really missed his friends and a lot of the specific toys and games at school. When his teachers sent videos, he would light up watching them. He felt like he was learning with them again. I think he especially loved the videos in which they would reference things he liked and his specific love of them - like when Ms.Valentina would do the animal videos and would comment about which animal was Henry's favorite. He also loved the Zooms - he still talks about how much fun he had doing the scavenger hunt with his friends via Zoom. He liked learning about what they were doing and seeing their faces, but he also felt like the scavenger hunt was like "playing" with them again. It gave us something to look forward to every week. Additionally, the videos and the Zooms helped prepare Henry for virtual/hybrid kindergarten. By the time he started that in August, he already knew the basics of Zoom etiquette and how to interact with a teacher on the computer.

Mom of Henry, 5 & Walter, 2

Special Thanks

We would like to extend our appreciation to the teachers at Lucy Brock Child Development Lab Program. Your tireless work on behalf of children and families during the pandemic has been remarkable! Thank you for allowing us to share your story!

Our Contact Information

Dr. Teressa Sumrall

Assistant Professor

Department of Family and Child Studies

Appalachian State University

sumralltc@appstate.edu

Phone: (828) 262-2660

Dr. Andrea Anderson

Director of Lucy Brock Child Development Lab Program

Department of Family and Child Studies

Appalachian State University

andersonaw@appstate.edu

Phone: (828) 262-3006

Dr. Dionne Busio

Assistant Professor

Department of Family and Child Studies

Appalachian State University

sillsbusiodm@appstate.edu

Phone: (828) 262-2019

Jennifer Klutz

Co-Lead Preschool Teacher

Lucy Brock Child Development Lab Program

Department of Family and Child Studies

Appalachian State University

klutzjm@appstate.edu

Phone: (828) 262-8079

References

Arndt, J.S., & McGuire - Schwartz, M.E., (2008). Early childhood school success: Recognizing families as integral partners. Childhood Education, 84(5), 281- 285

Baker, J. A. (2006). Contributions of teacher-child relationships to positive school adjustment during elementary school. Journal of School Psychology, 443), 211-229.

Ball, R. (2006). Supporting and involving families in meaningful ways. Young Children, 61(1), 10–11.

Hamre, B. K. & Pianta, R. C. (2003). Early Teacher-Child Relationships and the Trajectory of Children's School Outcomes through Eighth Grade. Child Development, 72(2), 625-638.

Kim, E. (2002). The relationship between parental involvement and children’s educational achievement in the Korean immigrant family. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 33(4), 529–543.

Marcon, R.A. (1999). Positive relationships between parent school involvement and public school inner-city preschooler’s development and academic performance. The School Psychology Review, 28(3), 305-412.

Morrison, J., Storrey, P., & Zheng, C. (2015). Accessible family involvement in early childhood programs.

Sills-Busio, D. (2021). Early educators’ perspective and experience using pedagogical documentation to support individualizing for children with disabilities in inclusive settings' has recently been published online in Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, DOI: 10.1080/10901027.2021.1895383

Waanders,C., Mendez, J., and Downer,C. (2007). Parent characteristics, economic stress, and neighborhood context as predictors of parent involvement in preschool children’s education. Journal of School Psychology, 45, 619-636.

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