Remote education will be available within 24 hours of the school being informed that a pupil is self-isolating.
The remote education activities will be available in Google Classroom. There is a selection of topic based activities which can be accessed across the week that will reflect the broad curriculum pupils receive at school. The activities set will focus on the objectives that are being covered with the pupils in attendance at school to support self-isolating pupils with transitioning back into school.
Remote education is planned using a wide variety of sources including video lessons, PowerPoint presentations and worksheets or supporting resources.
Remote education and study time each day When planning our remote education each week we have been mindful to the DfE guidance which requests that schools set work that is of equivalent length to the core teaching that pupils would receive in school. A minimum of 3 hours, on average, learning each day is suggested across the school cohort in KS1, although it is recognised that pupils in EYFS will require less than this.
We understand that our school community have different approaches and home situations during this time are varied. Please know as a school we are acutely aware of this and appreciate that families may need to take into consideration significant factors to enable them to plan daily remote education for their child.
Based on feedback from previous remote learning our current remote education offer has been enhanced to include the following:
Use of Google Classroom for viewing and submitting remote education
Weekly live sessions from a familiar adult which may include leading learning, sharing stories or providing general feedback and messages relating to the learning that had been submitted
Videos of stories being read by staff that link to topic teaching (Reception)
Learning videos recorded by Maple staff to model activities or concepts particularly in English
Online video lessons that are recommended by the DfE e.g. Oak Academy, Letters and Sounds for Home and School and White Rose maths
Early Years Foundation Stage Remote Education Offer Nursery
A selection of activities linked to the prime areas of learning: Physical Development, Communication and Language and Personal Social and Emotional Development
Two focus nursery rhymes and a selection of number songs and stories
Links to key texts which will be read in class that you can share at home
Reception
Daily Phonics, Maths, Literacy and Physical Development lessons or activities
Suggested activities linked to the specific areas of Expressive Arts and Design and Understanding the World
Suggested activities linked to the prime area of Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Suggested songs, stories and rhymes to learn or listen to throughout the week
KS1 Remote Education Offer Year 1 & 2
Daily Reading, English, Maths and Phonics sessions and activities
Suggested texts that link to stories online which will be used in class
A suggested science or topic session to complete across the week
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.
Engagement and Feedback - Where there is partial or full school closure including class bubbles It is important for staff to be able to gauge how children are progressing through the curriculum whilst completing remote education and it is important that we receive feedback from parents about their learning. This will help staff to assess and adapt planning to ensure that it meets the needs of our children.
We have systems in place to check at least weekly, whether pupils are engaging with their work and we will contact parents directly if pupil engagement is a concern. Class teachers will call pupils who are self-isolating and therefore completing remote education once a week, to motivate and encourage them. A member of the key stage teaching team will also respond to any queries or questions via email within 48 hours.
Reception and Key Stage One Please submit your learning via Google Classroom, we would encourage parents to submit at least one daily activity.A member of your child’s key stage team will provide feedback within 24 hours of when this is submitted wherever possible, if staff are well. This will include specific feedback relating to your child’s progress and learning where appropriate.
Class teachers will call pupils who are self –isolating or accessing remote education once a week to motivate and encourage them. These calls will take place between 9am and 3pm and will be approximately 5 minutes per child. A member of the key stage teaching team will also respond to any queries or questions via email within 24 hours.
Nursery The Nursery team will be happy to receive photographs of play based learning activities that have been set via Google Classroom. A member of your child’s key stage team will respond to the learning within 24 hours of when this is submitted wherever possible, if staff are well.
Class teachers will call pupils who are self-isolating once a week to motivate and encourage them. These calls will take place between 9am and 3pm and will be approximately 5 minutes per child. A member of the key stage teaching team will also respond to any queries or questions via email within 24 hours.
Email addresses for year groups are as follows, should you need to make direct contact with staff:
Attendance and Accessing Remote Education Remote education is compulsory for all children. Families are expected to submit learning as frequently as they are able to.
If a pupil is unwell and unable to complete any learning on a particular day while self-isolating, parents must report their child’s absence to the school office.
If you are unable to complete this work with your child due to your own illness, please inform your child’s teaching team via the year group email. We understand that this is a particularly challenging time, especially if families are experiencing times when they are not well. We have asked all families to contact the school office if they are unable to access online learning and the school will look at what support it can provide.
Additional support for pupils with particular needs 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:
Pupils with an EHCP or SEND will be contacted by a member of the teaching team to offer additional support to you as a family.
This may include additional learning resources, practical ideas for learning at home, increased contact with your child via phone or video call and specific remote learning activities which reflect their specific needs.
There will be regular phone contact to ensure you are feeling supported at home and to check If we can support you further at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should my child expect from immediate remote education in the first day or two of pupils being sent home? Remote education will be available on Google Classroom within 24 hours of the school being informed that a pupil is self-isolating - daily activities and resources that can be used to support your child at home. There is also a selection of topic based activities which can be selected across the week that will reflect the broad curriculum pupils receive at school. The activities set will focus on the objectives that are being covered with the pupils in attendance at school to support self-isolating pupils with transitioning back into school. Remote learning is planned using a wide variety of sources including video lessons, PowerPoint presentations and worksheets or supporting resources.
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. The remote education is carefully planned to match the teaching sequence in school. For example, if the class are learning a specific sound on a specific day in phonics, this will also be reflected in the remote education offer.
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:
Early Years: Nursery - 1 hour (divided into very short sections of up to 10 minutes each) Reception - 2 hours (divided into sections of up to 15 minutes each)
Key Stage 1: Years 1 & 2 - 3 hours in total
How will my child access any online remote education you are providing? We use Google Classroom as our online learning platform. Activities and lesson videos will be uploaded on to the Google Classroom platform for families to access remotely. There will be additional support in place for those families who are unable to access Google Classroom at home.
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 have some devices available to be loaned to pupils for accessing remote learning at home, these are borrowed at your own risk.
Families who do not have access to a printer will be provided with a paper copy sent to them via post to support remote learning at home.
As a school we are using YouTube as a platform for teaching videos and stories or other resources. YouTube can also be accessed on a device such as a mobile phone or tablet.
Families who do not have access to laptops or internet are asked to inform the school.
How will my child be taught remotely? We use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely:
Recorded teaching (e.g. Oak National Academy lessons, video/audio recordings made by Maple staff)
Live sessions at key times in the week, as appropriate
Printable resources produced by teachers (e.g. workbooks, worksheets)
Commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips or sequences such as White Rose
What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?
Pupils who are in the EYFS will be provided with some play based activities as well as formal learning activities. Children should be able to access some of these activities independently (depending on the age and stage of the child). Phonics, maths or writing activities in Reception will usually require adult support.
Pupils in Key Stage 1 will be provided with a wide range of activities, they may be able to access some activities independently. They may require support to complete some activities.
The teaching team will be responding to remote learning that is submitted via Google Classroom – if families are unable to access Google classroom, they can also submit learning via the year group email addresses:
Nursery & Reception - eyfs@maple.rbksch.org
Year 1 - year1@maple.rbksch.org
Year 2 - year2@maple.rbksch.org
As identified within the government documentation, we recognise at Maple that children in Key Stage 1 or Reception often require high levels of parental involvement to support their engagement with remote education, which makes digital provision a particular challenge for this age group.
How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?
Google Classroom will track learning that is submitted and staff will provide feedback for the learning that has been received.
If there is a concern around your child’s engagement with remote learning your child’s class teacher will make contact with you via telephone or email to find out how we can support you further.
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 marking automatically via digital platforms are also valid and effective methods, amongst many others. Our approach to feeding back on pupil work is as follows:
Feedback is currently delivered via Google Classroom. Pupils can expect an acknowledgement for each piece of work they are submitting with a comment or by the work being ‘returned’
Teachers may provide whole class feedback on particular pieces of work
Teachers will comment on the learning and provide specific feedback regularly where appropriate, for example identifying a next step in your child’s learning
In KS1 and Reception pupils will receive at least 2 specific learning comments weekly and this will relate to their next steps in learning.
If my child is not in school because they are self-isolating, how will their remote education differ from the approaches described above?
Pupils will receive daily learning activities which will be uploaded to Google Classroom
Families will receive a weekly phone call from the class teacher or another member of the year group team
Pupils learning will be responded to via Google Classroom