Remote education provision: information for parents

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.

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?

Work will be shared via our school communications software (Arbor or Class Dojo) for children to access online. In some instances, a paper pack may be provided that will contain the same work. Please note that the online resources may contain videos that will enable children to complete their work.

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?

Our remote curriculum contains the core reading, writing and maths skills that will enable our children to continue to succeed at home as if they were in school, however, adaptations may need to be made to enable this content to be delivered effectively online.

A selection of wider curriculum work will also be set but this may be reduced in quantity to ensure that the core subject areas can be delivered most effectively.

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 Two: 4 hours

Accessing remote education

How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?

All links for lessons will be shared daily through our school communications application (Arbor App or Class Dojo)

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:

• The school office may be able to provide an electronic device to enable online access (either a laptop or WiFi dongle)
• Paper packs may be provided (on request), along with blank exercise books and writing equipment.
• Work can be share via a clear photograph if completed on paper, or completed packs may be returned when the next pack is collected.

How will my child be taught remotely?

We use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely:

• Recorded teaching by class teacher with opportunity to message for additional support
• Recorded teaching from other providers (Oak National Academy lessons, White Rose Maths)
• Printed paper packs produced by teachers (e.g. workbooks, worksheets)
• Textbooks and reading books pupils have at home
• Commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas (Reading Plus, Spelling Shed, Times Tables Rock Stars etc)
• 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?

Children are expected to log in each day and complete the work that is set. The videos shared and tasks chosen are designed to enable children to complete their work largely independently. However, sometimes adult support may be required. It is important that adults provide a clear space and time for their child to work and be available to contact the class teacher should an issue arise.

How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?

Children’s engagement with the online content is monitored daily. Should your child be unable to access the work on a specific day, please inform you child’s teacher as soon as possible.

We appreciate that not every child will be able to complete work during the normal school hours due to extenuating circumstances so we will give the whole day for work to be accessed.

If no work is accessed on a given day, a message will be sent to the parents the following day to check that there are no issues. Should work not be engaged with for a second day, a phone call will be made. If a child does not complete any work during a week, a formal letter will be sent to the family.

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. Our approach to feeding back on pupil work is as follows:

The majority of work can be completed online and shared with the teacher through the Class Dojo app. Feedback will then be shared through either a comment on the post or by resending the work with annotations on it.

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:

Support will be available for all parents who are unsure of how to access work online. Adjustments will be made to the work sent out for children with specific needs to enable as much independence as possible. Where a SEND need may impair a child’s ability to use technology correctly and safely, an alternative provision will be considered. Please liaise with your child’s teacher to discuss this further.