Before the lockdown commenced I created a parent website that was to help reduce the anxiety and pressure that parents might face being home and having to play the role of 'teacher'. Part of the website has a section on common words that students can use to help test themselves or practice over the lock down. I had just kept all the resources on the home learning website but have decided after many requests to publish the common word resources here.  

You will find an image to preview you the slides, the link to the youtube recording of the words as a whole and then in a test mode and then a link to the slide deck where you can make a copy of these slides for yourself. 

Want to visit the home learning website? You can do here!

During this lockdown, teachers have needed to adjust, make changes and reflect on practices that have or have not worked for them. Everyday we are learning as professionals what will work for our students online in this distant home learning, and what also is just a complete fail. Communication has been a huge part of this, with many using zoom to connect, teach & continue to build skills with our students. 

In my zoom sessions I do model a lot of my learning so my students can see, hear and have me explain what is happening. This is modelled through my iPad, air played to the session in my zoom. I have found this very helpful in helping connect my students to the learning and also to ensure I am being clear in my learning. 
Check out this video tutorial below that shows you how I use screenshare and annotation apps/software during a zoom conversation. 

I have had a website refresh and tidied up my online store. The great thing about having resources on my website is that they are in NZ$. Teachers Pay Teachers is in US$ meaning they are usually more expensive than if purchasing on here. 
I am in the process of moving all my resources onto my website including all my freebies. I originally thought I would keep them on both but have decided to keep everything all in one place. Perfect for New Zealanders who can buy in NZ$!
​Check out my resources including new puzzles that are live online now - freebies included!

I love Seesaw activities that require students to manipulate and move around the learning around to solve the equation. These are great to help students practice their addition and subtraction, using the objects to make the sets and then solve the equation. These are themed for cupcakes, donuts and hotdogs; also using the multipage tool of seesaw to have more than one practice for the activity. 

I came across this Bitmoji scene from a lady on a facebook group I follow. This amazing idea is such a fun and creative one using your Bitmoji. There was a tutorial that I followed to make my own but then I couldn't find the post again. So I just created my own tutorial instead. Many people are using this for Google classroom, seesaw posts or just updates for students to add excitement or difference. Check out my example below and tutorial you can watch to make your own!

Using google slides for home learning or distant learning activities? I have a range of resources and activities on my Teachers Pay Teachers store that might help! Why recreate when it is already there? Check them out below with even a preview of how each one works. 

Ice-cream addition and subtraction: this activity is great practice for students who are adding and subtracting to 10/20. There is a number line to help them and the ice-cream can be used to help count forwards to back along the line. 

Word families: this activity is great for learning about word families. Simply drag the words to the right family. 

Build a word: use the word tiles to build a word they know! There are 3 variations to be able to spell different words. 

High Frequency words: drag the right colour dot to the word it tells you! Great for word recall. 

Numbers 1-20: this interactive one has a space for students to find the right number, type the number and then drag the right amount of dots to create the number. 

There is nothing harder than helping parents and students use Seesaw without being around to actually help them. It is already hard enough doing online learning, but sometimes technology makes it even more difficult!
These cheat sheets were designed to help target key questions that parents and students have when using Seesaw. How to sign up, how to interact and how to navigate. For students it shows how to post to their journal too. Great to share with parents who might need a visual guide to help them navigate this new learning. Preview the sheets below and grab a copy on the link below. 

This week I set up digital sticker books on Seesaw. These are to provide motivation for the work completed and submitted online for our week activities on Seesaw. These are easy to set up and use the stickers that I have created as well - just slightly different. My students have loved this online reward system and encourages them whilst we are on home learning. Watch the recording tutorial below! 

I am using zoom for daily class meetings whilst we are in lock down, meaning that I will be attempting to run some sort of normality PLUS fun activities in these sessions. Using this type of learning could be tricky, but here are some tips that might help you! These are grouped around home fun, reading, writing, maths and word work. Something for everyone and all of these can be done without technology (apart from the zoom session). Click on the link below for the posters. 

I love making fun interactive things that students can use in different ways. Technology can be used in so many ways and it is always fun using something differently to usual - in this case Google Slides. Last year I posted a link to a website post from Kasey Bell sharing a way you can make 'apps' on Google slides. Not really apps, but things that you can click on to go to different places. So fancy hyperlinks. 
I created some different versions over the years but have release a new one day - targeting junior maths concepts of counting sets and adding simple sets!

You can find a link to my other ones below too. Simply click on the URL and copy it to your students to complete at home or assign it as an activity on Seesaw! Can't wait to share this one with my class. 

Today I ran an online zoom session sharing what I am doing in my classroom for home learning whilst we are on lockdown. I have delivered lots of online learning over this holiday period but for some reason I was extra anxious today about sharing my ideas. Mostly because of how judgemental people have been online and I am mindful of what people think about setting work for their students online. But nevertheless, I shared what I am doing with everyone and you can take it or leave it. 
I have always loved sharing what I am doing in the classroom and remote or home learning is no different. I am confident in the ideas I have and that it will help continue to build connections with students whilst also practicing key skills we have learnt in the classroom. 

Missed the session or want to watch the recording? Find the below and also a link to the slides you can access - with links to resources I have made available for you to make copies of. Find that at the bottom of the page. 

Over the past week I have been creating Seesaw cheat sheets for educators! One page help tips on using Seesaw and their tools! Great for new users, someone wanting a little bit of help or that visual reminder for your classroom or office! These are constantly being added to based on needs and requests so stay tuned for more! These are free to download and use - simply click on the link at the bottom to be taken to the pdf! 

Want the second set of cheat sheets? Grab them below!

Today I ran the last of my online Seesaw PLD, focusing on providing feedback in different ways - using the traditional Seesaw tools and new stickers. It was a really quick PLD but awesome if you are looking to provide your students with feedback in different ways. Check out the recording and slide deck attached for a copy of the slides and also my template you can use. 

With online learning, it can be really daunting to come up with ideas that are fun yet still covering key skills or concepts they might have or be learning in class. So this quick tip for word work is a great way for students to practice and keep up with their learning from class. This one involves a really simple slidedeck which you can make a copy of for yourself here. 

Screencastify is a great free and simple screen recorder tool you can use at home or in class. It can record students work, you talking, be used as a webcam, record desktop and more! It even has options to be used as a whiteboard for drawing to support work that is being recorded. 
Screencastify is a chrome web extention that sits at the top of your browser. It is added through the website or the chrome extension store and records up to 5 minute long videos. These are then saved in a Google folder in your Google drive for you to access, view, share and even download! Great for documentation and modelling! 

Check out my video navigation showing you how to find it, use it and record with it!