Managing Learning Remotely

Lessons Learned 
None of us could have imagined that a day would come where virtually every child in the world would be educated via remote platforms.  None of us could have predicted how the reality of an isolated, quarantined world would play out.  One lesson learned is that working, teaching, and learning from home is, in some ways, more exhausting than doing the same things in a brick and mortar building with a typical work schedule.  Most of us are sleeping a little later, skipping some fashion and make up routines of the normal work day.  We aren't managing student discipline or the usual annoyances and conflict inevitably present when lots of people occupy the same space.  And...we aren't laughing together.  We aren't sharing a quick story in the halls between classes.  We aren't debriefing tough experiences with colleagues at the end of the day.  Neither are we touching base with a friendly coworker for quick reassurances.  No words of encouragement shared in a passing moment.  No "aha" moments when we see understanding light a young person's eyes.
We don't need easier days, we need each other - lesson learned.

Another lesson learned... teachers hold the wealth of the world in their hands.  Beyond the economy, beyond political opinions, beyond all annoyances related to quarantine, the health and well-being of our children is what we most cherish.  We trust teachers to help shape and nurture our children and we suffer as a community when their ability to do that is negatively impacted.  However, teachers have an amazing capacity to overcome incredible hurdles to teach and support their students.  Venture staff... I am in awe of you.  Thank you for stretching the definition of what it means to teach.  Thank you for finding resources and re-imagining what school can be. Thank you for finding a way when it seemed that a way didn't even exist.

Some Cool Ideas
Venture staff have devised a variety of ways to inspire learning for it's own sake to replace learning for a grade.
 
These two math lessons have inspired some fun thinking.  Kevin made the videos using an iPhone and edited with iMovie.  The students post answers and explain thinking using flipgrid.com
Canfield paper Airplane
Cookie Task

We are showcasing student art and poetry on our Venture High School webpage
Check it out and share with students.  If you have assigned student projects that can be featured on this page, please get student permission and then share it with Lena to have it uploaded. 

Please, email me the innovative things you're doing with kids to share next week.  Some of our best learning is from each other.

Working with the weird paradox that more time and more freedom is more exhausting... At first I thought with all this extra time we would all enjoy a book study.  I was wrong.  People who initially agreed it would be a great time to do some professional learning have shared with me that they are maxed out.  If you want to read "Creating Cultures of Thinking" then please do, it's a great book.  However, we will save the book study for next year.