This information is intended to provide clarity and transparency to pupils and parents or carers about what to expect from remote education where national or local restrictions require entire cohorts (or bubbles) to remain at home. Greenland has also published its detailed remote education policy which can be found in our policy section Remote Learning Policy
For details of what to expect where individual pupils are self-isolating, please see the final section of this page.
The remote curriculum: what is taught to pupils at home
A pupil’s first day or two of being educated remotely might look different from our standard approach, while we take all necessary actions to prepare for a longer period of remote teaching.
What should my child expect from immediate remote education in the first day or two of pupils being sent home?
Pupils will be sent home with an exercise book to complete work in and a paper-based work pack. Should your child require additional stationary, please contact school. Your child will already have an assigned username and password to our chosen platform to host remote education: Microsoft Teams. Children will have already come home from school with a letter explaining how to access Microsoft Teams and any additional online learning platforms. This letter will include all of the login information that you will need. Please contact school if you require a replacement.
Children will be able to log in to Teams immediately after being sent home. School staff will upload learning materials and will post any future ‘meeting’ times in the General Channel within the Team.
For pupils who do not have immediate access to electronic devices, the paper-based work pack will include sufficient consolidation activities to keep your child busy. Within 48 hours, school will also deliver a paper-based work pack including new curriculum content. During this time, school will also work to provide a solution regarding lack of devices. Regardless of whether you have access to devices or not, school will endeavour to provide your child with the high-quality education that they deserve.
Following the first few days of remote education, will my child be taught broadly the same curriculum as they would if they were in school?
We teach the same curriculum remotely as we do in school wherever possible and appropriate. However, we have needed to make some adaptations in some subjects. For example, pupils will digitally record their work where appropriate allowing school to teach computing skills in a timely way. Some subjects such as PE, will be adapted to best suit the needs of your child participating in the home environment. Other subjects, like art and science, which often require specialist equipment may be moved to later in the school year in order for all pupils to access them in an equitable manner.
Remote teaching and study time each day
How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?
We expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) will take pupils broadly the following number of hours each day:
| Key Stage 1 | 3 hours (minimum) |
| Key Stage 2 | 4 hours (minimum) |
We understand that no family will be the same. Although we have set minimum guidelines for how much time pupils should spend ‘working’ throughout the day, we appreciate that this may not always be possible. Some families may have limited broadband, others may have young children who require regular breaks. School will aim to support you the best we can in the circumstances. We want you to know that you are doing an amazing job so please be kind to yourself.
Accessing remote education
How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?
Remote education will be provided primarily through Microsoft Teams. Teams can be accessed through a range of digital devices but works best through a laptop or tablet. Some lessons will give you the option of printing out resources but there is no need to do this if you don’t have a printer. The exercise books sent home by school will suffice.
If my child does not have digital or online access at home, how will you support them to access remote education?
We recognise that some pupils may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those pupils to access remote education:
We will attempt to source laptops and mobile data packages for any family that has not got access to appropriate equipment. School will lend laptops to families – this will involve an agreement between the family and school that any equipment will be looked after. Please contact Miss Lewis for more information.
Some families who may need extra support understanding how to use the devices can also contact school. We will arrange a safe, socially-distanced support session demonstrating how to use any equipment. Your children will have had lessons in school about how to use devices.
There may be some families who would prefer to have printed materials sent home. This can be arranged by school so please contact us if you would like to discuss this option.
Providing pupils with timely feedback is essential to help them learn. Whether your child is using their own device, borrowing one from school or completing paper-based work packs, we will endeavour to ensure that your child receives regular feedback. Staff from school will contact you every week – at this time, teachers will be able to provide individual support to both parents and children.
How will my child be taught remotely?
We use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely:
- daily meetings to discuss work and outline where support will be available throughout the day
- live teaching (online lessons taught to you by a member of school staff)
- recorded teaching (e.g. Oak National Academy, Read Write Inc Phonics and White Rose Maths lessons, video/audio recordings made by school staff)
- opportunity to use Office 365 to demonstrate learning/understanding (Word, PowerPoint etc)
- printed paper packs produced by teachers (e.g. workbooks, worksheets)
- commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips or sequences
- long-term project work and/or internet research activities
Engagement and feedback
What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?
We expect that all families will experience remote education in a slightly different way. However, we have several expectations of parents/carers which we know will make remote education more successful:
- Parents/carers should be contactable during the school day, alerting school staff of any concerns
- Parents/carers should abide by the Teams Code of Conduct and support their child to do so too
- Parents/carers should encourage and support their children to engage with and complete work to the deadline set by teachers
- Parents/carers should aim to create an enjoyable remote education experience, asking for help when needed
How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?
Through the use of Teams and other online learning platforms, teachers will have access to engagement information. Teachers will be able to see what tasks pupils have completed, how successful they have been and be able to give next steps via feedback.
Staff will be in regular contact with parents/carers through telephone calls and email with engagement being one of the weekly discussion points. We know that remote education will not always be easy but if school leaders believe that pupils are not accessing the education that they are entitled to then further action will be taken. School will work closely with families through our attendance officer (Mr Graeme Shaw) to ensure that solutions can be found to any challenges that arise.
How will you assess my child’s work and progress?
Feedback can take many forms and may not always mean extensive written comments for individual children. For example, whole-class feedback or quizzes marked automatically via digital platforms are also valid and effective methods, amongst many others.
Teachers will endeavour to provide feedback on pupil work. This can take many forms but should be carried out at least weekly. The following options are not an exhaustive list but are recommended:
- Quizzes created on Microsoft Forms – teachers to analyse and deliver feedback on success
- Pupils to respond to tasks via the chat function in meetings or by replying to posts – teachers can provide both verbal and written feedback
- During live lessons and drop-in support sessions, verbal feedback will be offered throughout the process
- Pupils can upload work (or photos of work) to files and class notebook – teacher can provide written feedback
- There are also a variety of other learning platforms which can be shared via Teams which provide feedback (eg. Reading Plus, Lexia and TT Rockstars etc.)
- Additionally, parents can email completed work to teachers and feedback can be returned accordingly
- Teachers can provide verbal (and in some cases written) feedback to pupils and parents/carers over the telephone
Additional support for pupils with particular needs
How will you work with me to help my child who needs additional support from adults at home to access remote education?
We recognise that some pupils, for example some pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), may not be able to access remote education without support from adults at home. We acknowledge the difficulties this may place on families, and we will work with parents and carers to support those pupils in the following ways:
Our pupils with SEND are catered for by their class teacher and will have differentiated work and tasks to complete. Our SENCO (Mrs Claire Guy) is also available to discuss how parents/carers can best meet the educational needs of their child.
Staff have also carefully adapted remote education practice to meet the needs of all learners including the youngest children in school. Our expert teachers have chosen the best resources to help your child learn, suggesting a range of other activities for you to try at home. Both Ofsted and the Department of Education recognise that live teaching is not always the appropriate strategy for effective remote education so please do not be alarmed if your younger child is not accessing as many live lessons or whole-class meetings as an older sibling or relative.
Remote education for self-isolating pupils
Where individual pupils need to self-isolate but the majority of their peer group remains in school, how remote education is provided will likely differ from the approach for whole groups. This is due to the challenges of teaching pupils both at home and in school.
If my child is not in school because they are self-isolating, how will their remote education differ from the approaches described above?
We will endeavour to provide your child with as close to the education they would receive in school at home. However, in most cases, pupils will not always have access to live lessons due to the difficulties presented for staff already teaching in school. School staff have a range of options which they can discuss with families, including recorded videos from trusted educational partners and consolidation packs. Rest assured, your child will be eligible for catch-up intervention to help plug any gaps created during their absence.
