Zooming Back to School

Zooming Back to School...The Right Way! With many of our kiddos going back to school virtually - Zoom, or other video, classrooms seem will be our reality for a little while. So what does that mean for you? If anything, it should indicate that it is time to help your student step up their virtual attendance game if you haven’t yet! Here are some tips to make sure your student be "present" for their virtual class!

Dress The Part

They may not be heading into the school building, but that doesn’t mean they can’t dress like they are. Dress them as you would for any other day at school. The structure of the typical morning routine is helpful for most kids and they get to show up looking and feeling prepared to learn.

Check The Lighting

The main thing to focus on with lighting is avoiding unnecessary shadows or glares. Make sure that you have a steady light source that lights the face evenly, preferably in front rather than from the side or behind. If you don’t have a lamp available, sit your kiddo in front of a window.

Pick a Plain Background

The more boring, the better. Having an exciting background can take away from focus and that is not what you will want during class time.

Change Your Angles

Make sure the camera is sitting right at or right above eye level, that way they are not looking down on the camera but also not looking up. If your webcam is built-in, you can place books under your screen to bring the camera up to eye-level - or have your kiddo sit on pillows to boost them up if need be.

Speak Loud and Clear

Always do a soundcheck with your student before logging into a class. You want to make sure they are close enough that words are heard but not so close that you are filling any silence with breathing. Also, ensure that their workspace is absent of unnecessary noise - this can be disturbing to your student as well as others that are logged into the class.

These few tips will help your student have great virtual interaction with their teacher and classmates! Happy "Zoom back to school"!