Blended Learning Newsletter

March Newsletter

Blended Learning Department

In this issue:

Park Culure and Community
Did you Know? SEL in Nearpod
Building Culture and Community
Best Practices: Culture and Community

March Digital Citizenship Focus
BL Resources
February Challenge Winner
Choose Your Adventure Challenge - Chance to win!

Park Culture and Community

Amusement parks are all about the rides, the games, and the roller coasters. However, one of things you'll spend the most time doing is waiting in line. During this time friends and family members share stories, play games, and come up with various ways to pass the minutes and in some cases, hours. Time is our friend in the case, as it allows us to build relationships and to connect with the people around us.

This is also important in the classroom. Allowing time for students to connect and relate to each other helps create a safe and accepting environment, so that all students feel welcomed. Continue reading this newsletters for ways to support a strong classroom culture and community.

Did You Know?

NEARPOD provides ways to build culture and community through its social and emotional curriculum already built into their library.
You can include items like a Think-Pair-Share Activity or Class Discussion slide to a lesson to encourage relationship building and promote social skills.
(**These resources should act as a supplement to your existing instruction. In addition, please vet all resources to make sure the content is age-appropriate**)

Building Culture and Community

In order to feel comfortable engaging in a blended learning environment, a culture of acceptance, respect, and safety is crucial to student participation. Setting clear expectations and procedures, and even modeling what these look and sound like, for both face-to-face and online instruction is essential for successful student interactions. Use of digital tools can provide a variety of ways for students to interact and engage, so that all students feel heard and valued. See the best practices, below, that can help create an inclusive classroom where all can and do participate.

Best Practices: Building Culture and Community

When considering amusement parks and the time spent in line waiting on rides, food, games, shows, etc., culture and community are built as you pass the time in conversation, taking a minute to breathe or looking at the park map to plot your next adventure. Think about conversations and time spent in line as you explore Social-Emotional Learning ideas to build culture and community in your classroom. You cannot take care of others until you take care of yourself.

The article "Supporting SEL Through TECH: How Blended Learning Can Foster Social-Emotional Development" states:

Dallas ISD's Lucy Ford suggests that teachers can push students toward lessons that focus on specific SEL messages. Tailor the lessons to emphasize whatever message you've been delivering, that have "SEL skills built in." For example, when they're reading for comprehension, she says, pick stories "that teach the reader about what was going on, why [the characters] acted this way and why they changed their minds later."

Here are a few things to consider as you look at when building culture and community:

Monthly Checklist

Consider:

Using SWIVL to record academic or behavior goal-setting conversations during teacher/student conferences. These videos can be referenced at check-in points throughout the quarter.
Incorporating a Nearpod lesson on accepting emotions, building self-esteem, or any of the many topics that are offered through this platform. (**These resources should act as a supplement to your existing instruction. In addition, please vet all resources to make sure the content is age-appropriate**)
Creating a Jamboard where students can work together, collaboratively or share something about themselves. This allows students to grow and learn from and about each other. Example: A student timeline of life events or make a copy of Drag and Drop: What is your Mood, Today?
Conducting a Canvas discussion where students share experiences (see openers and closers) and make connections to the topic being taught.
Using Flipgrid to build student-teacher relationships. Have students make a short video telling you about themselves or sharing an answer to a question just with you.

March Digital Citizenship Focus

Short lessons and activities to teach digital citizenship are available again this year for all grade levels on the Guilford is Cyber Safe website. There are lessons on themed topics for each month, October through April. Please share these resources with staff members at your school.

Resources

BL Resource Website: Visit our website for all things blended learning. Locate your blended learning specialist, find out about our virtual course offerings,

District-Provided Tools Database: Want to know what digital resources we have for you? Check out the district's Air Table. You can filter to find the information you need.

Resources Document for Best Practices: If you like the Blended Learning Look-for document but feel like you need to know more, please check out our resource page that directly aligns with each of the blended learning focus areas.

Digital Learning Resources Canvas Page: Need help with one of our GCS district-provided resources? Visit our digital learning resource page to find video tutorials and instructional guides on anything from Swivl to Canvas.

Congratulations to Kylie Russell, from Pleasant Garden Elementary School! Ms. Russell won the February Newsletter Challenge and has received a $25 gift card to Taco Mama, a Simply Southern Tote, and a coupon to Dewey's Bakery. We would like to thank our community partners for their generous donations:

Taco Mama - Battleground Ave.
Simply Southern - Friendly Center
Dewey's Bakery- Friendly Center

Culture Challenge

How do you use digital tools to promote SEL in the classroom?

Please submit a link of an activity you created to build culture and community using Nearpod, Jamboard, Canvas Discussions, or Flipgrid to lamberj2@gcsnc.com. Once you submit your link, you will automatically be entered into a drawing for a prize.
For help with these tools, please access the Distance Learning Resource course highlighted above or the links in the checklist above.

Last Day to submit your Culture Challenge entry is Friday, March 29th.

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