Virtually Learning Remotely

In this remote work and school situation, we are getting by; but, how do we make it better?

I am dyslexic. I have found creative ways to learn and express myself - many of these do not fit in the standard boxes of educational practices and are generally visual in output.

I have a three-year-old. I worry that they will fall behind as my preschooler craves structure and an abundance of creative activities.

COVID happened. The pandemic placed an abrupt burden on our household when considering the need to learn virtually.

The main issues we faced included:

1. Every enrolled learning moved to an unpracticed virtual setting with slightly modified content.
2. My three-year-old requires preschool learning and has no aptitude for listening to an instructor through a virtual screen.

The Problem Today

So here we are, virtually learning in a virtual world. I am attending a webinar via Zoom, and they are playing and empathy-based game. Don't get me wrong; it's not like our struggles started the day we began confining for COVID; those same problems just got amplified.

1. Instruction often accounts for learning styles but stops short of thinking through varied learning disabilities.
2. Our three-year-old has an immense appetite for hands-on non-virtual projects and is precociously stubborn when it comes to instruction.

So, what do we do? In this case, I opted to write this post with two goals in mind:

1. Share tips and thoughts on designing learning (virtual or not) that considers learning disabilities; I hope to create a spark in you to learn more about this topic.
2. Share a list of themed activities I have pulled together to help my preschooler - noting, this is what is working for us and is narrowly focused on preschool skills.

Considering Learning Disabilities

Approximately 15 percent of the world's population, or an estimated 1 billion people, live with disabilities. "Learning disabilities" is a term often heard in a school-based setting. However, the need for awareness and management of learning disabilities does not end when students graduate: Approximately 470 million people with learning disabilities are working age, and learning disabilities require ongoing support and management in many areas of adult life. (Training Industry Magazine)

In summary, there are a lot of us facing this problem. Truly inclusive learning takes time to think through the coursework from different use cases. In general, however, I have found a few things that have worked for me:

• Create variety in how the concepts are presented. This tip suggests you use classic blended or universal learning methodologies, but, in the fast switch to virtual, these are often not considered for lots of reasons: lack of experience, lack of technology, and lack of time. An easy win is to provide materials in various formats (print, digital, audio, etc.). Using this and other universal learning methods means that you will use a technique that hits the sweet spot for the majority of your learners.
• Provide ample time. It is always better to gift time back to people than to blow through content to ensure you've "shared everything" in the 45 min you could find free. My advice here is to require the time needed to teach the topic with a buffer for the virtual world. My advice is to ask for 2 hours instead of that truncated 45 min. If you are working in activities, tack on an extra few minutes onto each timeslot as this will allow the learners to use coping tools they have already developed to overcome their weaknesses.
• Be flexible. You may have inadvertently made an activity difficult for a learner to create integrity in action. If a learner expresses concern, work with them on a solution. (Example: I participated in a business simulation that required 2-3 hours of reading homework for each participant. This assignment was on printed paper for a couple of reasons: (1) To ensure laptop carrying business learners don't hide in their laptops trying to pry the data out of the activity during the simulation. (2) Ensures that the propriety of the exercise stays intact. This format means I would easily spend 6+ hours merely attempting to read. I requested digital copies of the materials to use Text-to-Speech software, which would reduce the homework time to that of the rest of the participants. The facilitators worked on segmenting out just the files I would need in PDF form and shared them with me and gave them my promise not to use my laptop on the day of the simulation. WIN!)
• Ask if assistance is needed. Some people struggle with being an advocate for themselves. Keep it open (State you are available to assist or answer questions) and be proactive (check-in with each learner or learner group privately - Is this working for you?). Make it safe for those that need help.

Here is some helpful reading on the topic:

• Universal Design for Learning
• Making e-Learning Accessible
• Adapting Online Instruction for a Learning Disabled Audience
• Universal Design - A New Paradigm for Teaching Students With Disabilities
• Instructional Design That Makes Sense for All Learners

Considering the Preschooler

The number of children of preschool age in the United States was around 1.6 million in 2019. While some of them may have returned to the classroom and another portion of them work well in a virtual setting, I feel sure there are many in the same boat: absolute failure of virtual learning. If your preschooler requires as much hands-on learning as mine does, this information may prove beneficial.

Before COVID, my child attended a Montessori program. In a Montessori preschool, children are grasping the same concepts as their peers in a traditional classroom. Still, the idea is for children to learn individually and at their own pace by moving freely around the room and choosing from a wide range of hands-on, age-appropriate activities designed to teach specific skills. The primary goal of Montessori classes is to help children learn concentration, motivation, self-discipline, and a love of learning. (Arlington County Schools' Montessori program.)

Our Montessori, not unlike other Montessori programs, provides themes for the week and ideas that build on themselves. As this method worked for our child, we looked to make a schedule that continued this kind of learning and would calm the worry in my mind of them falling behind.

So, how are we coping? Every day, we start with motivation! I have a small tin box that I place a little reward inside, think chapstick or favorite paint color. This reward is earned by completing the activities for the day - if they are not finished, there is an opportunity to earn that reward the next day - it's never lost completely.

Our first activity is traditional preschool learning. I have built an amazon list focused on the items we use (Learn: General Pre-K). From there, we focus on one of the themed activities for the week - noting the theme stays the same throughout the week and may build into the next. We've noticed our preschooler picks up the concepts when a theme repeats throughout the week. Their conversations focus on what they learn (e.g., during the gardening week, my child would remind me how the tomatoes are grown as we prepared dinner: "Mommy, you dig the dirt, put the seed, add the water, and wait... then you get fruits and leaves, and then we make dinner! Right?" "RIGHT!").

So, what are the themes? This list continues to grow, but below, you will find all of the themes we have used and ones we have planned (at the time of publishing this article), with a link to an Amazon list (ARCHIVED) for ease.

• Learn: Art
• Learn: Body
• Learn: Bugs
• Learn: Earth
• Learn: Flying
• Learn: Gardening
• Learn: Science
• Learn: Shapes
• Learn: Space
• Learn: Water

Additionally, I have services like KiwiCo, Little Passports, and Green Kid Crafts send me boxes of activities. I generally save themes boxes and build on the theme of the box with activities from the lists above.

On a personal note, I would love to know some of the things you have included, from activities to services! #weareinthistogether, so sent them my way!

In Closing and Considering We've Never Done This Before

While pandemics have occurred on our planet before, this is the first time we can keep work and learning afloat via a digital medium is readily available; but, that doesn't make it easy. Education, corporate learning, and distance working have pockets of virtual expertise - but overall high-quality distance learning isn't a standard. It also doesn't help that balancing work and parental life is not easy. The New York Times states, "In the Covid-19 Economy, You Can Have a Kid or a Job. You Can't Have Both" as if worrying about the virus alone wasn't enough.

All in all, find a groove that works for you demand more at better quality, and never stop learning.

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