Like a lot of parents out there, the Dads here at Smiles & Frowns have been heading towards the new school year with a real dose of distance learning anxiety. When we searched distance learning to help our own kids, we saw a tidal wave of ideas – 22 Tips! 12 Tips! 9 Tips! – but nothing really simple or actionable. Yeah, it’s super stressful.
So, Dads being Dads, we went into fix-it mode. We read articles, talked to teachers and just looked for a way to give parents a good place to start. And that’s how our SPREE™ Distance Learning board was born. It’s available now with our latest update.
What is SPREE? It’s simply a plan to help kids build good habits for managing Space, Preparation, Routine, Engagement and Excellence – the five common threads we saw for distance learning success.
Ready for us to break this new behavior chart down for you, Dad Style? Maybe it’ll give you a good place to start!
SPACE: A dedicated learning space isn’t a luxury… it’s a necessity. Even if it’s just a seat at the end of a table that your student can turn into a positive, personal destination for success. So the Smiles and Frowns here help kids create a dedicated SPACE specifically built for learning.
PREPARATION: Class time is much shorter and less frequent online. It’s hard to catch up if you don’t show up ready to go. So these Smiles and Frowns are meant to help strengthen their PREPARATION skills, so they log in ready to learn each day.
ROUTINE: One of the biggest downsides of home learning is that kids start to lose the daily patterns – from waking to dressing to eating – that keep them going. So these Smiles and Frowns help kids stick with a ROUTINE that will keep them on a dependable road to results
ENGAGEMENT: When you’re not physically there to ask a question or join a discussion, it’s natural for participation to slide. It really takes active work on this one, so the Smile and Frowns here are support active ENGAGEMENT so kids lean into their studies instead of laying back.
EXCELLENCE: Finally, it’s important that kids still set goals and keep their expectations high. It’ll be easy for lose focus and treat distance learning like some strange vacation. But while we’re here, these Smiles and Frowns help encourage a mindset of EXCELLENCE every day.
And, like all Smiles & Frowns boards, you’re free to start here and customize things however you like. Whatever works, works:)
Sol, ready or not, it’s time to take this year on. To all the parents everywhere, we wish you the best this school year. Even if you don’t use Smiles & Frowns, we hope that building some strength around these key areas might help your family in 2020 – and beyond.
Please take care of each other and stay safe out there!
Kindly,
Brad and Tommy G
The Smiles & Frowns Dads