STUDENT REMOTE LEARNING
Year 8 Remote Learning
Teaching has a habit of surprising you on a daily basis. When you work closely with hundreds of people, you need to be prepared for anything. And then a pandemic comes along.
While it's fair to say none of us imagined remote learning would be a feature of the 2020 school year, I have been immensely proud of the way the entire school community has adapted to the sudden changes forced upon us by COVID-19. The flexibility and determination shown by students to manage their learning under these circumstances continues to be a credit to them all. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank families for the efforts made to support our teachers in the delivery of remote learning to their kids.
I'd also like to thank Kali and Gus, who have offered to share some thoughts on their remote learning experience so far from a Year 8 perspective.
Tom McLoughlan
Year 8 Director of Learning
Gus Maibaum - Year 8
So far online school has being great. Getting up at 8:50 without worrying about the bus, then eating my breakfast in 2 minutes all ready and set up for school. There is a good amount of work that I can finish by Wednesday and I have plenty of time to cook, exercise and keep happy.
It can be a bit hard sometimes without a teacher to teach, because you could be stuck on a simple thing for a long time trying to figure it out and not know what to do, but if you're in that situation the teachers will always email you back if you’ve got a problem, which is great. Other than that I have had a lot of time (maybe too much time) to catch up with my family and can’t wait to see every one when school resumes.
Kali Pinge - Year 8
At the start of this term I was a bit unsure about how I would go without seeing friends and only virtually talking to my teachers. The first week had its challenges, but by the second week I had more of a routine, and I was really enjoying being able to work from the comfort of my home. A big thing that I found helped me to concentrate and stay on task, was to go outside for some exercise while I was on my snack and lunch breaks (my dogs really enjoyed this too as usually I would take them for a walk). Overall I think that online school is going really well, but I can’t wait to go back to school and be with my friends.
Literacy and Numeracy Support at SCSC
Surf Coast Secondary College is pleased to be part of the Department of Education Middle Years Literacy and Numeracy Support (MYLNS) initiative. The initiative gives intensive teaching support to identified Year 10 and 11 students who are at risk of finishing school without the literacy and numeracy skills they need for future work, education and training.
The MYLNS initiative gives students and teachers additional support to improve their literacy and numeracy, building on the hard work that SCSC is already doing to improve literacy and numeracy outcomes for all students. This is conducted with the support of the MYLNS Numeracy and/or Literacy Improvement Teachers, who work directly with students, and build the capability of other teachers to improve the literacy and numeracy of students at our school.
Students who are part of the program have received a tailored learning plan based on their individual needs. While working remotely, they have access to a Canvas course that directly supports their learning needs. As a MYLNS team, we will also be working to support families in engaging students in literacy and numeracy activities in contexts that are relevant to your young person’s experiences and interests. Please find below some suggested literacy and numeracy strategies for home.
Numeracy at home:
Cooking: Choose a recipe and change the servings. How much of each ingredient is needed?
Reading: Discover numeracy in news articles or infographics by selecting an article that interests the student and discuss the meaning in the data.
Food labels: Compare the nutrition information panels of products and consider, for example, recommended daily intake of sugar and carbohydrates.
Home improvement: Involve young people in calculating materials needed, estimating cost and ordering materials.
Play games: Board games and card games have a wide range of numeracy skills and strategies in them. A family games night is a great way to get everyone involved in the learning and fun.
The weekly shop: Calculate the weekly shop online, challenge your family to see who can come up with the most savings by selecting the most cost effective items. The winner may receive a tasty treat!
Literacy at home:
Continue to encourage them to write for everyday skills. This includes writing recipes, family messages, shopping lists and greeting cards.
Persuasive writing will become a focus at school. Encourage your child to read or watch news articles and write down their opinions and ideas about specific issues.
Read a book or magazine together and discuss the story. What meaning does your child take from the piece of text?
Write a blog on a hobby or interest.
Write letters to post to friends and family members.
Play online word games like Scattergories: https://swellgarfo.com/scattergories/
Happy learning!
Claire Power - Numeracy
Andrea Loving - Numeracy
Regina Bishop - Literacy
Andrew Brown - Numeracy and Literacy