Now that I’m out of school, I do what I always do. I think about the fall. I’m planning for different scenarios of teaching. Today, I’m sharing 3 tips for connecting with students during virtual teaching before the year begins. Many of us don’t yet know what teaching will be like come August and September. But, if we start virtually, using these tips will help build those important relationships with students and their families. I have taught for over twenty years. I discovered pretty quickly that student and family relationships were the key to a smooth year.
The tips I’m sharing today will help you start your new fall classes off on the right foot even if we are separated by a computer screen.
Deliver A Welcome Letter and Gift to Connect Before Online Teaching
Every fall, I write a welcome letter and mail it to my students about 2 weeks before school starts. This letter is the beginning of my relationship with my students. If I have to start virtually, I will deliver these letters and a small gift to their doorstep. I’ll introduce myself, say hello, and tell them how excited to have them in my class. The face-to-face contact is so important to make connections with these little humans!
Using the free app Route4Me is a time saver for deliveries. Enter your students’ addresses and Route4Me creates a driving route for you. You can change the path if you don’t like what it gives you.
Virtual Parent Meetings To Build Relationships
My second tip for connecting with students during virtual teaching before school begins is to offer individual online parent meetings. I do this every year face-to-face. Parents sign up via Signup.com or Signup Genius for a time that works for them. This is a perfect time for them to talk one-on-one with you, and tell you everything they want about their student. It also gives them a chance to ask specific questions about me, the classroom, or the curriculum. This has become one of my favorite times of the year and really helps build relationships with my families before the busy year begins.
If we have to start back with online learning, I’ll offer the same meetings only I’ll use Zoom. Google Meet and Microsoft Teams are other options to use, as well.
Virtual Student Meetings To Build Strong Connections
The third tip I have help build relationships with students before the year begins is to set up individual meetings via Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams to get to know your kiddos a bit better. Keep it pretty low key. Ask questions that help you get to know one another. I’ll let them show me special items or pets. They will have read the Welcome Letter by this time, so I’ll ask them if they have any questions about our upcoming year.
I spend some time talking about and showing them around Google Classroom because this is the platform we use for assignments. I’ll then show them how to access the Back to School Questionnaire that I have all my students fill out the first or second day of school.
These individual meetings are powerful ways to connect!
I hope we are back in the classroom like normally come fall. But if we aren’t, these 3 tips to connect with your students during virtual teaching will help you start to create that community a classroom needs to thrive.
How do you plan to connect with students during virtual teaching?
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