What's JOY Got to Do With It?

One Small Thing: Virtual Theme Weeks

Joyful Learning: Tips for Teaching Online

SEL Support: Resources for Educators

Joyful Leadership: Running a Great Virtual Meeting

Joyful Professional Learning: Virtual Book Studies

Mindful Coping Calendar

The intention of the “What’s Joy Got to Do With It?” newsletter is to share resources, strategies and examples that support the social-emotional growth and wellness of staff and students across our city. We are living through unprecedented times and there is no road map for the journey we are currently travelling. This month our newsletter is focusing on the core value of VBCPS of Doing Great Work Together. Our ability to connect and support one another during this time is of the utmost importance. The Office of Professional Growth and Innovation is committed to supporting the amazing staff of VBCPS and to the degree that you are able, we invite you to use the resources and examples in this month’s #VBAlwaysLearning edition to support yourself and those you serve.

Each month our #VBHasJoy newsletter will highlight One Small Thing you can do as an educator to cultivate joy in our schools and community.

Maintaining school spirit and a sense of connectedness can feel daunting given our current status of school closures. A fun and simple idea that has been popping up on #VBAlwaysLearning is the concept of a virtual theme week. If you are looking to incorporate this idea into your virtual community, this recent article from We Are Teachers gives 20 ideas and lots of samples that span PreK-12.

While virtual learning is not new to Virginia Beach schools, we are certainly experiencing new challenges, and it is inspiring to follow #VBAlwaysLearning on Twitter. Each day new examples are shared that showcase how our community is embracing risk-taking and inquiry as we explore new ways to deliver engaging, relevant, and authentic learning.

A recent Edutopia article by Kareem Farah offers 4 Tips for Teachers Shifting to Online Learning:

1. Simplicity is Key

The author shares it is critical to “design distance learning experiences that have very clear instructions and utilize only one or two resources.” Keep in mind that simple structures can still require rigorous thinking.

2. Establish a Digital Home Base

In VBCPS we have the tremendous benefit of having one-to-one devices. Through our learning management system, Schoology, we can meet our students’ need for predictability by allowing them to go to the same place to access learning tools and assignments. Cultivating stability and norms are critical during this time away from our classrooms and offices.

3. Prioritize Longer, Student-Driven Assignments

The need for autonomy and student voice does not diminish when learning is distanced from a traditional classroom. Kareem Farah suggests, “create opportunities for students to discuss what they’re learning with their families and include an element of student choice to really build engagement.”

4, Individual Touchpoints Are Game-Changers

Perhaps the greatest loss our students and staff will feel during this time of school closures and social distancing is the loss of human connection that is cultivated within our classrooms and offices. Touchpoints can be created through a variety of mediums: email, mailed letters home, phone calls, Schoology conferences, digital morning meetings, shared discussion threads, etc.

If you are looking for inspiration and practical strategies, follow these educators on Twitter!

Another great resource to support yourself with the transition to working virtually is the Department of Technology page for telework. Check it out HERE. (Please note this is an internal site to VBCPS.)

Now that we are communicating online in our offices and classrooms in VBCPS, we can look to ASCD’s recent article, Three Strategies for Better Online Discussions, for some guidance on designing and leading effective discussions.

Provide Clear Participation Guidelines

The following questions can help us to generate guidelines for online participation, and these work for both digital conversations and written discussions.

1. What is the purpose of the online discussion?

2. What practices will help students (and adults) accomplish that purpose?

3. What would “good” participation look like?

Show People How to Participate

Do your directions clarify what to do? Great! Even better is to show others how you want them to engage. We can model how to promote and sustain discussion by:

1. Asking good questions and using rich prompts: higher-order thinking questions spark more responses and generate more substantive discussion. (Check out the visible thinking core routines from Harvard’s Project Zero for some great prompts to kick off a discussion.)

2. Teach and model how to “uptake” when participants respond to others. In other words, how do we support back-and-forth digital dialogue? Providing sentence stems that direct others how to refer back to what others have written or said can lead to subsequent discussion. (Here is a great guide for using Accountable Talk from the Teacher Toolkit. Check out their downloadable templates by developmental levels.)

Help Students Use Visual Strategies to Make Better Connections

When using online discussion threads, visual design can inhibit connections. Here are three strategies for helping participants weave better connections during threaded discussions:

1. Encourage participants to use one another’s names when they refer to what others have written.

2. Use the font options to visually indicate types of responses. For example, italicizing a disagreement, bolding a new point or argument, or using color for a new topic can draw attention and invite responses.

3. Invite participants to help create their own symbol system for creating connections.

Source: https://inservice.ascd.org/three-strategies-for-better-online-discussions/

If you are looking for examples, follow these educators on Twitter!

In alignment with our division’s ongoing commitment to supporting the social-emotional needs of students and staff, please feel welcome to utilize the following as a resource for locating SEL websites, strategies, and examples.

Click HERE for resources chart.

What makes for a great virtual meeting? A recent article from Harvard Business Review answers this question by providing 12 steps to running a great meeting. Here are a few of the steps that we can all use to increase the effectiveness of our meetings.

Stick to meeting basics: Prior to the meeting, set clear objectives. Setting norms at the start of the meeting and then upholding these norms is key to using time effectively.

Reinforce interpersonal relationships: People are feeling isolated. A simple “check-in” at the start of the meeting can go a long way toward supporting our teams.

Call on people: It is critical to ensure that all voices are heard. If someone can join the meeting and never needs to speak, did they really need to join this meeting? Explore your software for options to raise a hand, pause and ask all participants to type their opinion in the chat section, and even call on individuals to communicate that all voices are valuable.

Tackle tough issues: Don’t avoid the controversial topics. Set up protocols and guidelines that support your team to engage in tough conversations safely.

Check out all 12 tips HERE.

These VBCPS educators are making the most of connecting virtually!

A big JOYFUL shoutout to the VBCPS Health and PE department. Check out these two awesome newsletters built for parents, teachers, and our community!

Elementary Version

Secondary Version

This Active Coping Calendar has daily actions for April 2020 to help us look after ourselves and each other as we face this global crisis together.

Click here to learn more and download the calendar.

For more information, contact the Office of Professional Growth and Innovation of Virginia Beach City Public Schools at pgi@vbschools.com or 757.263.6972.