We know that there’s a great deal of uncertainty in many parts of your lives right now, but we want to make sure that coding class is not one of them. To that end, we’ve put together this brief guide to make sure that things go smoothly as you shift to online lessons.
We’re fully ready to support you!
We have developed and are continuing to fine-tune our remote learning environment and have compiled a suite of best practices that all of our teachers are aware of. We host live workshops and share recorded trainings so that all of our teachers can bring the best possible experience to our kids.
Getting Started
In order for your child to participate in an online lesson, they’ll need to download Zoom. This is the platform we use for online work because it uses lower bandwidth which allows for smoother audio and video than other platforms. It also provides multi-screen sharing, ability to break out into smaller groups, and an interactive whiteboard which makes for a highly engaging learning experience.
We’re fully ready to support you!
We have developed and are continuing to fine-tune our remote learning environment and have compiled a suite of best practices that all of our teachers are aware of. We host live workshops and share recorded trainings so that all of our teachers can bring the best possible experience to our kids.
Getting Started
In order for your child to participate in an online lesson, they’ll need to download Zoom. This is the platform we use for online work because it uses lower bandwidth which allows for smoother audio and video than other platforms. It also provides multi-screen sharing, ability to break out into smaller groups, and an interactive whiteboard which makes for a highly engaging learning experience.
- Download Zoom Client for Meetings (if you have trouble with this step, please don’t worry as the program will automatically download when you launch the first meeting)
- Once you’ve downloaded the Zoom Client, test your audio and video by clicking on “New Meeting.” Zoom’s default is to start all meetings with microphones muted and cameras turned off. You can activate each of these things by clicking on the buttons in the bottom left of your Zoom screen.
When you click on the small up arrow next to the microphone, you’ll be given the option to test your microphone and speakers. For a more detailed walk through of getting started you can read this article from Zoom.
Troubleshooting and Your First Remote Lesson
When you attempt to join the Zoom session, it’s possible that you will receive one of a handful of messages indicating that the Zoom session is not ready to begin. Some of these are shown below:
Troubleshooting and Your First Remote Lesson
When you attempt to join the Zoom session, it’s possible that you will receive one of a handful of messages indicating that the Zoom session is not ready to begin. Some of these are shown below:
These messages are not indicative of a problem, but rather the result of your teacher not having started your meeting yet. Simply text the teacher that you are ready and they will let you know when to reconnect.
If you run into any other problems when you look to start your session, text your teacher then as well; they are prepared to offer basic troubleshooting.
Please keep in mind that many teachers will have multiple lessons in a row, so they may not respond immediately. Still, the text will alert them to the fact that you are trying to connect, and they can call you at the lesson’s start time to offer support. Teachers know to allow additional time for each student’s first remote session so that they can troubleshoot without needing to sacrifice instruction time.
Best Practices
The first thing to know is that your teacher is here to help make sure things go well. Have your child store the teacher’s phone number so they can reach out with any troubleshooting questions.
Other best practices to put into place include the following:
- Use the Zoom Desktop client on a computer. If this is not possible, use the Zoom Browser client. iPads and other tablets will not work for group classes. In general, computers are highly preferable.
- The Right Setting: Conduct online sessions in a quiet, well-lit space with a strong internet connection. Background noise is even more distracting for online work than work in person. If your child can’t find a silent place to work, encourage them to use headphones.
- Be Prepared: Make sure the child has Zoom up and running before class and that all extraneous applications and windows have been cleared from the screen.
- Transitioning to online learning can feel overwhelming, especially for our younger ones. We’ve put together this guide to supporting your student during the transition to online learning.
Have an Open Mind
Our teachers have identified a number of pedagogical approaches that enhance the online teaching experience. If students have an open mind, they might just find they prefer online work to in-person work. Here are some activities that they might engage in:
- Narrate Your Work: Students may be asked to describe their thought process as teachers record the resulting work on a shared whiteboard.
- Group Projects: Teachers may have students all collaborate on the same project during class. You can read more about collaborating in groups here.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions at admissions@thecodingspace.com or 929-352-1272. We also continue to update our blog with helpful information.