Remote Teaching and Learning at Brooke
This fall, as we implement a remote learning model due to COVID-19 safety risks, we are committed to providing an excellent education. Brooke’s approach to remote teaching is different – find out why.
We have developed
Elements of Effective Virtual Instruction
Challenging and Knowing Students Virtually
At Brooke, great teaching has always been about students doing the thinking. In our remote learning schedules, teachers lead live, rigorous full class instruction virtually, which positions students to engage with difficult content and discuss their thinking. We reserve the afternoons largely for conferencing, wherein teachers meet individually with students (and families) to offer tutoring and build the relationships so critical to effective instruction.
More on great teaching at Brooke
Building Cultures of Achievement Remotely
We define our Culture of Achievement (credit to Professor Theresa Perry) as a shared value of and belief in every student to achieve academically. We strive to make this expectation explicit and to celebrate it regularly. While that's harder to do remotely, we are continuing classroom and whole school celebrations of student achievement. We hold regular virtual Morning Motivation meetings for younger students and community meetings for high school students, with the goal of fostering positive, achievement-oriented identities, anchored in our students’ inherited wisdom and legacy of achievement, passed on to them by their families, ancestors, and communities.
More on Brooke's Culture of Achievement
Adapting Teaching Practices for our Current Times
Even our most experienced Brooke teachers are new to teaching remotely. This challenge requires a growth mindset from students and all of the educators at Brooke. Since the summer, our teachers have worked to master the primary virtual teaching tools we've selected: Zoom, Seesaw, Nearpod, Google Classroom, and Edulastic. Beyond these basic tools, we have also devoted professional development sessions to ensuring our work is trauma-informed and rooted in our anti-racist orientation.
More On Brooke's Remote Learning PlanBack in March we abruptly ended school as we knew it and scrambled to get materials and technology into students' hands for remote learning... Moving to remote learning taught us a lot about our community. Our kids, their families, and our staff are resilient. Together we were able to continue building relationships and maintain our commitment to upholding a Community of Care where students feel known, challenged, and loved.
Learn Along With Brooke Teachers
Watch Great Virtual Lessons
After Piloting Remote Learning Last Spring
We Learned A Lot about Quality Remote Teaching
More Structure and Live Classes
This past spring required flexibility, but now EVERYONE needs increased structure and predictability to thrive. Our fall plan stressed regular schedules, consistent expectations, and live remote classes which more closely mirrors in-person school.
Read our Remote Learning Plan
More Data-Informed Support
While teachers supported students individually last spring, this year our regular one-on-one meetings are informed by standards-based assessments, which will guide how we support students, just like it does when we are in-person together.
Review our Student Results