St James's Primary School and Nursery Unit Remote Learning Policy

St James’s Primary School and Nursery Unit

                       Remote Learning Policy

This Policy was formally agreed by the Principal and Governors of St James’s Primary School and
Nursery Unit on 4th February 2021.

Signed                                        Principal

Signed                                        Chair of Governors

Dated 4th February 2021                       Date of Review February 2023

In the event of extended or long-term closure, staff at St James’s Primary School and Nursery Unit
will continue to provide education and support to our children through remote learning. In this case,
learning will be conducted using the Seesaw Class app (other platforms may be considered in order
to meet specific learning and teaching needs). This will allow staff to keep in daily contact, in a
professional and confidential manner with each pupil in their class and to maintain a close
relationship with the pupils. Teachers will schedule learning weekly so that it does not overwhelm
or concern our pupils and parents and so they can choose when suits them best to complete
activities. Teaching and learning can be tailored, changed and updated as time progresses, allowing
for replication of classroom activity to the best of our ability. We will also post our weekly overviews
on the school website for ease of access. Children will also have remote access to reading material
(Bug Club in Years 1-3 and Accelerated Reader and MyOn in Years 4-7) as well as to Active Maths.
This year, our Year 7 children have access to IXL through a DE funded initiative. In all
communications we will adhere to our commitment to maintaining pupil wellbeing.

Flexibility

We realise that the circumstances that cause our school to close will affect families in a number of
ways. In our planning and expectations we are aware of the need for flexibility from all sides:
parents may be trying to work from home and so access to technology as a family may be limited;
teachers may be trying to manage their home situation; systems may not always function as they
should. An understanding of, and willingness to adapt to, these difficulties on all sides is essential
for success.

Expectations

In the case of extended or long term closure or in the case of children not being able to attend
school due to self isolating due to Covid-19, we believe that it is in the best interests of our children
that we continue to provide structured support to the best of our ability. Bearing in mind the need
for flexibility, we understand that work may be completed at different times depending on a family’s
unique circumstances. The work that children engage in during a period of closure will be part of
our current planning and so cannot be considered as optional. Children and parents/guardians
should consider the arrangements as set out in this document as highly recommended.

Expectations must be realistic as it may be the case that teachers are trying to provide remote
learning while still teaching their class in school.

Staff will:

    •    Share teaching and learning activities through Seesaw.
    •    Continue learning and teaching in line with current planning that is already in place
         throughout the school.
    •    Give credence to the fact that learning remotely will be more difficult, so tasks will be
         shortened and supported in smaller steps to allow for this.
    •    Provide appropriately differentiated opportunities for learning across the curriculum with
         clear learning intentions.

•   Provide clear instructions for activities set. This could be presented as text instructions or
        video or audio recordings.
    •   Provide a variety of multimedia resources to support learning and present work in a variety
        of ways, for example, links to video and audio clips.
    •   Encourage children to engage with the variety of Seesaw tools to respond to the work set,
        for example, leaving videos, audio comments, screen recordings.
    •   Keep in contact with pupils through Seesaw only.
    •   Provide specific feedback on activities within 24 hours (excluding weekends and holidays)
        and during normal teaching hours: 9.00am until 3.00pm unless a teacher chooses otherwise.
    •   Endeavour to reply to messages within 24 hours (excluding weekends and holidays) and
        during normal teaching hours: 9.00am until 3.00pm unless a teacher chooses otherwise.
    •   Make allowances for asynchronous learning and will not set deadlines for completion of
        activities, understanding that the circumstances leading to our closure will affect families in
        a number of ways.
    •   Foster a sense of connectedness between the children in their class through the sharing of
        some Seesaw posts and encouraging children to comment positively on the shared posts.
    •   Promote engagement with learning through Seesaw.
    •   Monitor engagement of children. If a child has not submitted any work in two days,
        teachers will contact the child’s parents on a pastoral level to ensure that the child and their
        family are well and that the child is receiving the work. If this is the case, the teacher will
        encourage the parents to ensure the child engages in remote learning. Teachers will keep
        the Principal/Vice Principal informed of concerns regarding engagement with remote
        learning.
    •   Promote reading using Bug Club or Accelerated Reader and MyOn ensuring that children
        have their log in details for these platforms.
    •   Set Maths activities on Active Maths for the children to complete at home ensuring that
        children have their log on details.
    •   Remind the children to use the internet safely.
    •   Take regular breaks away from the computer or iPad to engage in other professional duties
        as much as circumstances allow.
    •   If a teacher chooses to engage with children through a live session, they must use a platform
        approved by C2k and need to ensure that all children and parents have been sent the
        appropriate guidance. The teacher will record the session.

Children will:

    •   Be assured that wellbeing is at the forefront of our thoughts and they should take regular
        breaks, get fresh air, exercise and maintain a reasonable balance between online
        engagement and offline activities.
    •   Access other online platforms as directed by their teacher such as Active Maths, Bug Club,
        MyOn, Accelerated Reader, IXL and complete any activities set.
    •   Only send messages and queries that are in relation to tasks set by the teacher or in
        response to questions the teacher may ask them directly or which relate to their wellbeing.
    •   Only access the material shared by their teacher and will ask for parental permission to use
        technology for anything beyond that.
    •   Read daily, either independently or with an adult.

•   Consider using the school closure time to learn a new skill, follow their own interests to
        discover more about the world around us or be creative.
    •   Work to complete at least one activity every school day and submit this to their teacher and
        to complete the learning set by their teacher over a week.
    •   Record any video messages from a room in their home which is not a bedroom and wearing
        their normal day clothes (not pyjamas).
    •   If a child engages in a live session, they must follow the guidance provided.

Parents/Guardians will:

   •    Support their child’s learning to the best of their ability.
   •    Encourage their child to access and engage with Seesaw posts from their teacher.
   •    Encourage their child to complete at least one activity per day.
   •    Check their child’s completed work each day and encourage the progress that is being made.
   •    Encourage their child to complete all the activities and learning opportunities provided for
        the week.
    •   Encourage their child to access and engage with other online platforms as suggested by the
        child’s teacher such as Bug Club, Accelerated Reader, MyOn, Active Maths, IXL.
    •   Ensure that if their child submits any video messages that these are recorded in a room in
        the home other than a bedroom and that their child is wearing their normal day clothes (no
        pyjamas).
    •   Remind their child to use the internet safely only accessing the platforms suggested by the
        school and/or any links provided by their child’s teacher.
    •   Not screenshot or copy any information, messages or posts to share on social media or any
        other platform outside of Seesaw.
    •   Know they can continue to contact their child’s teacher as normal through the Seesaw
        Family app if they require support of any kind.
    •   Notify the child’s teacher and/or the Principal of any difficulties/barriers to remote learning
        or specific circumstances at the time that may prevent their child from completing the work
        set.
    •   If they wish their child to take part in a planned live session, parents must ensure that they
        and their child have read the guidance provided.
    •   Be mindful of mental well-being of both themselves and their child and encourage their child
        to take regular breaks, play games, get fresh air and relax.

Currently, in order to reduce the movement of materials between home and school and vice versa,
homework is provided on Seesaw. An overview of the week’s homework is provided at the start of
the week and activities are scheduled daily.

Scenarios

There are a number of scenarios in which remote learning will enable children to continue to learn
despite them not physically being in school.

•   Individual children self isolating for a few days while a household member awaits a test and
        test result
    •   Individual children self isolating for two weeks due to someone in their household testing
        positive
    •   Individual children self isolating for two weeks due to being a close contact
    •   Individual children off for longer than two weeks due to specific medical concerns either of
        the child or someone in their household

In the scenarios above, the class teacher will provide work on Seesaw during the school day trying to
replicate, as far as possible, the learning and teaching that is happening in the classroom. Children
will also have access to the homework set on Seesaw.

    •   A whole class self isolating for two weeks
    •   Whole or part school closure for two weeks
    •   Whole or part school closure for longer than two weeks

In the scenarios above, the class teacher will provide work daily for a few days. They will then
provide a weekly overview of learning opportunities on Seesaw and the school website with most of
the activities available at the start of the week so can children/parents can select which activities
they wish to complete and when.

    •   If a child is ill due to Covid-19 or any other illness/ailment

In the scenario above, work will not be provided as the child should take time to rest and recover.

We understand that there may be challenges for staff, pupils and parents/guardians during a remote
learning programme. We at St James’s Primary School and Nursery Unit are committed to continuing
to provide the best education we can, under the circumstances we face.

Using Collaborate Ultra

You can access Collaborate Ultra by clicking the link that will be sent to you on
Seesaw. Please keep the link private - do not share it with anyone outside our
school.
Sign into Collaborate Ultra with your first name and surname.
You must join Collaborate Ultra from a room in your house that it is not your
bedroom.
You must be wearing your normal day clothes, not pyjamas.
Mute your microphone when you join - only unmute your microphone when
asked.
If you want to speak, please use the raise hand function.

                       You will see these icons in Collaborate Ultra. From left
                       to right: My status and settings, microphone, video,
                       raise hand.

          At the top of the screen, click on the three lines to find the option to
         leave the session.

The session will be recorded by one of the teachers.