Wow, it’s Back to School time already! No one can say for sure what the new school year will look like for teachers and students in the U.S. There is pressure to open schools and there is pushback from teachers and parents who feel it is not yet safe enough to return to the classroom. School districts have all sorts of plans for teaching in various instructional contexts: in-person teaching 5 days a week, only virtual teaching remotely, or a hybrid mix of some form of in-person and virtual teaching.
What we do know is that whatever mode of instruction is used, it won’t be easy. Most educators are dedicated professionals who want the best for their students. But no one who became a teacher ever expected to find themselves in the teaching situation they facing right now.
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| Click HERE to download 4 free ebooks; source: TpT teacher-authors |
After getting through the past few months, teachers have a better idea of what virtual teaching entails. Which is not to say it will be easier once school starts again. And everyone now has experience with social distancing, though what that will be like in a school and in classrooms is not yet known.
To help teachers cope with whatever form of teaching they find themselves in as they go back to school, I am pleased to be part of a group of TpT teacher-authors who contributed ideas to a series of ebooks about teaching in this new social distancing world of education. There are 4 ebooks, each targeting a different group of teachers. Each ebook is formatted the same way – after introductory pages, there is one page by each contributor with a tip for either virtual teaching or social distancing teaching. Each page also links to a TpT resource readers may find helpful; included are both free and paid resources.
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| Click HERE to download these free ebooks; source: TpT teacher-authors |
I contributed to the ebooks for Grades 6 – 12; Grades 3 – 5; and SLP/SPED/Special Areas (which includes ESL). There is also an ebook for Grades PreK – 2. My pages can be found towards the end of each ebook. After reading through all of them, I am sure you will find lots of great suggestions. I hope they help make the start of the 2020 – 2021 school year a little easier for you.
For back to school ideas specifically about teaching English Language Learners, please read my blog post entitled 5 Quick and Easy Beginning of the Year Tips to Help Your ELLs. Although it was written before the pandemic, most of the suggestions are still applicable. Another blog post you might find helpful is called 5 Suggestions for Teaching ELLs Remotely. (Apparently I liked the number 5!)
