Online classes account for two-thirds of the Le Sallay Academy's curriculum. When we announced a webinar on online learning for parents whose children have transitioned to e-learning, we started getting questions not only from parents but also from teachers. They wanted to know the best way to organize online learning, so we decided to compile a list of lifehacks from the Le Sallay Academy.

1. How should I prepare my students for transitioning to online learning. Are there any apps I need to use


We would like to emphasize that the tools are not as important as the way you use them. The numerous posts by parents indicate that software is a much smaller issue than the school's approach to e-learning.

What is the main problem with online learning? When you had your first online conference experience, you probably noticed that online communication felt less engaging. The tone of voice is less noticeable, non-verbal signals are easier to miss.

Online communication is less saturated with emotional content. For children, this lack of emotional feedback becomes a big deal. Children learners, especially in primary and middle school, are motivated by an emotional connection to their teachers and classmates. Online is not enough to maintain this connection and students' motivation and performance suffer as a result. This is one of the reasons why online schools were not successful in replacing traditional schools.

At Le Sallay Academy, we make sure that all of our students have met each other in person before transitioning to online learning. This is what blended learning is all about. It is not just a buzzword, it is actually very effective.

Now the good news. When your school had to transition to online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you have taken your first step towards blended learning. Your students have already established bonds with each other. So the emotional aspect is taken care of.

There are other issues, though. So let's talk about them

2. How do I make lessons online more engaging hen teaching a class online:

Since online learning creates a less emotional connection, students get easily distracted and find it harder to focus. In class, a charismatic teacher can hold the attention of at least 80% of the students, but online is a different story.

Solution: draw your students in by increasing interaction. Online, Q&A sessions work much better than a lecture or an independent study time.

3. How do I deal with constant interruptions
Often there are simply too many students in an online class.
Not everyone is visible on one screen. Connection breaks, sound lags, and the video stalls.

Solution: break the class into smaller groups. It is better to have a smaller group over a shorter period of time than a larger group in a longer lesson. Fifteen students can accomplish more in thirty minutes than thirty students in one hour if there is less distraction and more opportunities for interaction. That said, fifteen students are also too many, 6-8 is an ideal number for one online class.

During an online class, students tend to speak over one another. Everyone has a mountain-sized echo and the words blend together.

Solution: mute all microphones by default. If you have a teacher's aid ask them to monitor any mics that create sound issues.

4. How to keep students focused

Kids can get distracted by games or chat apps during class. This can happen in any setting, but it's harder to control when the class is online. Smaller groups are easier to manage, but if the problem persists, you can ask parents to install a program that allows the teacher to check-in and take a look at the student's screen. The Go Guardian app has a steep learning curve, but can be very useful. ProctorU is another app. If your students use school-issued devices ask your system administrator about remote desktop software.

Now a few words about the things you can do to make online teaching LESS effective

1. "Just watch this video and ask questions"
Unfortunately, this simply does not work. While watching a video is easier than reading a text, students tend to quickly lose focus. A short video in class is fine, but the online class should be focused on encouraging communication between teachers and students.

2. Ask your parents for help with this assignment since you are all staying home anyway
Parents already have a hard time with their children at home 24/7, so giving them more work to do, is not an option. Teaching is our job, so we have to do it.

At the same time, parents tend to get more involved when the child is studying from home. Try to find time for feedback. School administrators can schedule a parenting conference online and explain the schools' approach.

A the same time, online learning can open up new opportunities:

- Introduce new online applications
You can show a video or a presentation (it is much easier to see it on screen than in class). Different online tools can help boost engagement. We use a gamification app called Сlasscraft, which is like Dungeons&Dragons but aimed at helping students achieve their study goals. We also make use of virtual labs for online experiments.


- Help students focus better.
A well-organized online classroom can be very calm and peaceful. Many students get distracted by the noise or their classmates chatting, but e-learning allows them to enter the full-screen mode and focus on the teacher. Some children have difficulty keeping still. They need to twiddle, rock their chair or even walk around. In school, they might distract others, but this is not a problem in an online setting. We have seen hyperactive or ADD children get much better results with online learning, where they can feel less restricted.


- Focus on individual learning
If you can make your groups smaller, you will have more time for each student. You might get a chance for a more personalized approach that we prefer.


- Build teamwork and assess the involvement
Online studies are a great way to teach remote teamwork. You can assign them a text, a presentation, or a multimedia project. In the school setting, they would assemble after class and discuss their common tasks, but in an online setting, you have more ways to track their individual contributions. If the project is based on Google Documents, the teacher can see edits made to the document, the level of involvement, student's comments, and notes.


Finally, a few words about the instruments. You might have a set of applications already, but we will give an overview of what we use so that you can check that you have all the necessary tools covered.

- We have used Google Classroom as a starting point, but have since moved to NEO LMS which allows us to work with complicated schedules and seamlessly blend online and offline classes.

- We use idroo or BitPaper to work on in class, but there are other online whiteboards available as well.

- We use Classcraft, to gamify the learning and many children enjoy it a lot. The students get even more motivated if you promise to convert game points into something tangible, such as currency for the future school auction.

This is our baseline set, but our teachers also use applications tailored to their needs, for example, for online language tests.

In conclusion, once again: it is not about the tools. The teacher's personality, professional stance, and ability to absorb new trends are much more important. If you have got this, the quarantine will not break your rapport with your class. This forced transition into e-learning might prove to be very valuable to you and your students.

Good luck and keep on doing a great job!