Distance Learning for Parents:
Distance learning for you and your scholar can be challenging. Here are a few strategies that can help make it more successful:
- Stick to a consistent routine daily. Set expectations about getting up, getting dressed, and eating breakfast.
- Create a schedule for each day with your children to break up the time. Include “class time” when they complete schoolwork, dedicated time for play, physical exercise, and social-emotional activities. Though there’s no need for a rigid agenda, all family members can be soothed by a predictable structure.
- Don’t have the TV on in the background all day. The worry for children will escalate if they repeatedly hear and view adults panicking or reports of deaths.
- For children without their own phones, set up a FaceTime playdate with a friend and let them chat using your phone.
You can see additional strategies in the article My Kid’s School is Closed, Now What?
Self-Care for Parents
As we all traverse this novel COVID-19 situation, we will all feel strong emotions and, given the uncertainty and potential threats, most likely anxiety. The article Regulating Emotions in a COVID-19 World provides evidence-based suggestions that may help during the coming weeks of disruption and relative isolation.
Keep up to date on the coronavirus within the DC area by visiting https://coronavirus.dc.gov/. Here you will find food resources, health guidance, resources for businesses and individuals, the operating status of DC government and answers to frequently asked questions.
Scholar SEL Activity: Notes to Self
In this easy social-emotional learning activity scholars take time to reflect on positive experiences, attributes, and/or aspirations by writing or drawing about themselves. When scholars take time to reflect on themselves and their experiences, they can build positive identities and mindsets. This helps them to appreciate their strengths and harness them in pursuit of their goals.
Learning Objectives
Scholars will:
- Practice taking time to reflect on themselves by drawing and/or writing
- Identify their positive experiences, attributes, and/or aspirations
- Develop positive identities and mindsets over time so that they can learn to draw on their strengths in pursuit of their goals
Materials
- Paper or Journals
- Pencil
- Music (optional)
The Big Idea
When we take time to reflect on who we are, how we’re growing, and what is special to us, we build an awareness of our strengths and beliefs that we can go back to when we need it.
Instructions
- Say The Big Idea (above).
- Ask your scholar to use their paper (or journal) and write about or draw a picture in response to a reflective prompt. Sample prompts include:
- Draw three things that went well today. What were you thinking? How were you feeling? What did you do?
- Draw your best possible future self. Who will you be when you grow up? What will you do? What do you like about that future person? Why are these things important to you?
- Turn on calming music and give students 5-10 minutes to draw.
- Optional: Have scholar share their writing or drawing with you
Suggestions for success:
- Keep it open-ended; there does not need to be a right answer.
- Ensure that this is positively oriented.
- The key idea here is that your scholar has an opportunity to look inward and reflect.
- If scholars need support, try not to give them an answer; focus on helping them think about themselves (e.g., their memories, feelings, etc.).
After the activity debrief questions(optional):
- How did your reflection go? Was it easy or hard to reflect and think about yourself?
- How do you know what you care about, or what you like about yourself?
Scholar Movement Activity: Yoga 4 Classrooms Mountain Pose
Keep yourself and your scholar active, engaged, and stress-free during the school closure. These mindfulness activities led by Lisa Flynn, founder of Yoga 4 Classrooms, are designed for parents to learn, share and/or practice the along with their scholar or children at home.
You can watch Mindful Activity of the Day- Mountain Pose on YouTube or use the card below to learn the pose.
Mountain Pose helps to teach scholars how to get centered and grounded by promoting mind-body awareness.
