Remote Learning
In order to ensure that learning is continuous, irrespective of self-isolation, Holywell Primary School has developed the following plan:
- This plan offers remote learning opportunities whilst also acknowledging that some households have limited access to devices and would require hard-copies
- This plan will only be applied when a child has tested positive for Coronavirus and is isolating at home in line with current government guidance
- This plan complies with the expectations and principles outlined in the DFE document Guidance for Full Opening of Schools
- Parents must understand that children are expected to engage in home learning, only if they are well enough to do so. If a child is required self-isolate and is feeling well enough, engagement in some form of home learning is compulsory, as is the expectation that Holywell Primary School makes that provision available and accessible to all.
Worksheets and Practical Resources
If a child is isolated from school, i.e. they have tested positive for Coronavirus or have symptoms and awaiting a result, they will be issued with work to complete electronically or as a paper document the day after they have reported this to school. (Paper Documents will have to be collected by a family member or friend who is NOT isolating). Children will therefore have the opportunity to continue their learning if well enough to do so.
Software and online platforms
Within all plans, teachers will set appropriate work in-line with our current curriculum, primarily supplemented by a range of resources provided by the websites shown at the top of this page. In preparation for home-learning, parents and children have received logins and passwords for a variety of platforms depending on their age (likewise teaching staff are familiar with them) including MS Teams, Tapestry, TT Rockstars, Numbots, Spelling Frame, Developing Experts.
Children will be set ‘Assignments’ by their teacher through Tapestry / MS Teams, where engagement is monitored.
Oak Academy has been selected to support remote learning for a number of reasons. The Oak Academy lessons are in-line with our teaching ethos – they encourage the use of retrieval practice, explicit teaching with high-quality modelling, and the use of the deliberate practice. The online lessons are free to all and offer a recorded taught session so that the children can access physical teaching from a teacher and then access work relating to that lesson within the same website. There are also hundreds of lessons specifically aimed at children with SEND needs and requiring additional support.
Holywell will aim to provide three main areas of study per day, including an English, Maths and a foundation lesson. This comes with the opportunity for the children to communicate with their teacher through messaging and if necessary, email via the main office, but as teachers are likely to be teaching their class during the day, it should be considered that they may not be available for an instant reply.
Remote Learning
Shorter and Longer term ongoing Support | Safeguarding/SEND |
The initial response to any isolation that has been reported to the school office will be to provide children with home learning materials via Teams/Tapestry. Teaching input for core and foundation lessons will appear as learning assignments that include clear instructions, shared links i.e. White Rose Maths, Oak National lessons.
In the event of a whole class/ cohort requiring remote learning, time will also be scheduled for the children to watch a pre-recorded assembly delivered by Mr Petrie or Mr Stephenson. This will encourage children to keep working, celebrate successes and promote togetherness.
In the event of teachers becoming ill, cover staff will ‘take over the Class Teams account with resources being identified by year group partners if possible, or the Senior Management Team if not. |
If a pupil is due to be off for a period of days and is entitled to benefit-related Free School Meals, we will ensure that a food parcel is made available through School Food Support.
If a child is vulnerable in any way, the Designated Safeguarding Lead will ensure that appropriate agencies are notified and arrange for regular safe and well checks via a phone call from the DSL (record on CPOMS school confidential safeguarding system).
If a child does not engage in remote learning, the class teacher or a member of SMT will call the parents/carers to discuss reasons, obstacles and to offer support. This could also be followed up by calls from our Wellbeing and Behaviour Mentor if there is a pastoral need
Where children would normally receive additional support from SEND agencies, the SENCO will make arrangements for those to continue via Zoom / Skype / Teams as long as the agencies engage in those meetings.
The SENCo will share appropriate Oak National SEND lessons with teachers who will disseminate accordingly. |
Access to Devices:
Our aim is to engage all pupils, not in school in remote learning. If parents/careers have insufficient devices for children in their household, and their child is classed as vulnerable/EHCP then we will have contacted them to ensure provision. If not, they should please get in touch with Mr Petrie via the school office.
Assignment Teacher Upload and Pupil Submission:
All pupils have been issued with Tapestry / Microsoft Teams logins at the start of each academic year as part of their homework study. The teacher responsible for your child’s remote learning will aim to upload work by 10 am each school day. Hand in[KC1] time will be set at 8 pm each school day as we recognise that busy households require flexibility beyond the end time of a regular school day. The majority of pupils find an earlier deadline set by their parent/carer is a good motivator. Please ensure that your children are aware that they will not be penalised for late hand in, although we may not be able to review work that is handed in late. Completed work should be scanned/photographed and uploaded to Teams/Tapestry (pen often shows up better than pencil). Teachers can then review the work completed and ensure that the following lessons address misconceptions etc. Please do not send in pupil work via the school office.
You can upload pupil work via a computer, tablet or mobile phone, provided that you have the Teams/Tapestry app. If you need help with this, there are plenty of easy to follow YouTube videos online such as this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4EkhwWw1ek
Study Time Expectation:
The teacher will decide which materials are most appropriate for the group of children following the government guidance of approximately 3 hours per day. We recognise that not all families can manage this every day, and again pupils will not be penalised for missing work. Accessing less is better than doing none at all.
Asking for Help:
We recognise that some children will work more at a different pace than others. If your child is really struggling, or completes work quickly (and to their expected standard), Please send an email to your child’s teacher via the office. A remote learning teacher will be available at some point during school hours to help.
If you require any additional technical help such as logins, uploads, downloads etc, please email: ICTsupport@holywell.leics.sch.uk
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