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Frequently Asked Questions

Unsurprisingly, we are finding that there are a few repeat questions coming our way so I thought I would set up a page for parents to dip into if you are struggling. Hopefully, over time, we will build a bank of FAQs to help anyone and everyone. Please feel free to complete the message form below with any ideas you think should be posted here and/or current issues you are facing. You are also still encouraged to Dojo message directly and we will respond ASAP.

For those wondering how to structure the day, please see a suggested schedule below (further information is in the PDF document). This is designed for Year R and 1 primarily, Miss Pearson will share a Poplar class variation directly.

Class Dojo: Can I upload photos directly to my child's portfolio?

YES! Photos (and videos - see below) are an ideal way to demonstrate your child's learning at home and, although these can be sent to the teacher via Dojo private messaging, this is laborious and requires them to upload on your behalf which is a little time costly. Uploading yourself is easy once you know where to go! The 'how to' guides and videos on the Class Dojo website are super useful. The two sets of links below should hopefully solve your issue. They will explain how to 'toggle' into your child's account in order to upload. Please ensure you follow the link to match your device (computer/laptop or iOS iPhone/iPad or Android).

To 'toggle' (on web): https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360026692752-How-to-Toggle-Between-Your-Parent-and-Student-Accounts#web

To 'toggle' (on iOS): https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360026692752-How-to-Toggle-Between-Your-Parent-and-Student-Accounts#ios

To 'toggle' (on Android): https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360026692752-How-to-Toggle-Between-Your-Parent-and-Student-Accounts#android

To 'post' (on web): https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360022857031-How-to-Post-to-a-Student-Portfolio#web

To 'post' (on iOS): https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360022857031-How-to-Post-to-a-Student-Portfolio#ios

To 'post' (on Android): https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360022857031-How-to-Post-to-a-Student-Portfolio#android

Class Dojo: I can't find a way to share videos with my child's teacher. Help!

The 'how to' guides and videos on the Class Dojo website are super useful. These links should hopefully solve your issue. The first will explain how to 'toggle' into your child's account which is vital before you can upload.

https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360041482832-How-Can-I-Send-a-Video-to-My-Child-s-Teacher-

Please ensure you follow the link to match your device (computer/laptop or iOS iPhone/iPad or Android).

To 'upload' on web: https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360041482812#web

To 'upload' on iOS: https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360041482812#ios

To 'upload' on Android: https://classdojo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360041482812#android

DoodleMaths/English has started asking my child questions that are WAY too hard for them - can you do anything?

Sometimes it feels like the system skips quickly through the topics your child finds easy but then ramps up a bit with trickier questions. The questions are designed around your child's curriculum, however that does not mean they have encountered everything in class already. Whilst there are 'New' games with teaching segments, some children may not fully comprehend the new learning straight away and this is ok.

We can recalibrate the system so that it settles back to a more appropriate level if you think that would help; we have done for a few others recently. Before requesting we do so, consider the following:

How independent is your child managing to be on Doodle? The system is designed to move on as the child is ready, however it will progress much faster if you help them to get answers correct. In theory, there should be super easy questions that they are able to access independently – that is the aim of it. Plus, if the sound is on it will even read most questions – although the voice can drive you a little bonkers sometimes!

Have you tried encouraging physical resources? Just like our 'Kitchen Table Maths' videos demonstrate, maths at this age REALLY needs children to 'live' their maths sometimes, not just look at it. Try using items in your home to replicate the questions on screen - does it make a difference? Have they tried sounding words out loud? In class, we would never have a silent Literacy or Phonics session, so try to encourage your child to speak up at home too.

Home school is SERIOUSLY exhausting. I have literally 5 minutes to myself all day. How do you survive this!

Have you ever tried yoga? Many of our staff have channeled their 5 minutes of peace into 'Yoga with Adriene' and couldn't recommend it highly enough. Check out all her different playlists and videos here

https://www.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene. From just 3 minutes to 43, invite Adriene into your home and take a bit of you time. Remember, you can't support your little people if you aren't feeling all that strong yourself. Also, all teachers are actually superheroes - we just don't wear our capes in case they get caught under a chair leg .

I can see a website link on a learning webpage but nothing happens when I click it

Not all web addresses have been hyperlinked, try copying and pasting the full address link into your browser bar. If it still doesn't work, please get in touch - we may have changed the webpage destination but not updated the link!

I only have my phone data and home learning is eating it all up

Please get in touch with Mrs K Jax or Mrs Kinsey via Dojo private messaging. We may be able to help with applying for internet for you.

My child has completed lots of tasks today, do I need to send them somewhere?

YES PLEASE! It is very important that teachers are seeing daily work, so we can inform our plans for the following days. We are also trying our best to give personalised feedback for children, to help with individual needs and learning points. Although it is lockdown, school remains 'in session' and so we need to know that children are engaging in school tasks every day, just like they would if they were on site with us.

All children have their own account on www.classdojo.com and parents are able to upload photos and videos direct to their Profile Portfolio. Don't panic if you don't know how to do this yet, scroll up to find the Class Dojo solves near the top of this page. 

My child's teacher said the staff have recorded stories to watch but where are they?

These are being added regularly to the stories section of the video centre. Here is a direct link:

https://churchillkentcofe.primarysite.media/playlist/aspen-larch-poplar-stories-wk1-2

Plus, there is a webpage dedicated to the stories we are sharing each week, with some additional links, puzzles and activities for your child to do. Find the 'Storytime!' pages here:

https://www.churchill.kent.sch.uk/storytime/

Reading is becoming a battle - my child has read the books they brought home from school before Christmas and is bored!

Many parents have asked if we are able to 'swap' reading scheme books at school, however this just isn't feasible or sensible given the current pandemic levels in our area. There are however, a number of other options available including free eBooks online, 'Pocket Rocket' booklets your child has already accrued during phonics lessons and other reading games/websites. Please visit our R/1 Reading page for further information and links: https://www.churchill.kent.sch.uk/r1-reading/

We only have 1 phone/tablet to work from and 3 children trying to access learning. Help!

Please get in touch with Mrs K Jax or Mrs Kinsey via Dojo private messaging. We are doing our best to allocate additional devices to families and have delivered many already.

Where do I find Literacy videos posted by Miss Francis?

These are in the video centre part of the school website due to the files being too large to embed directly into the Literacy task pages. You can access by clicking the link below or from the school website homepage:

• Select 'Children'
• Select 'Blogs and Videos'
• Scroll down and select 'Video Centre'
• Select 'Aspen Larch 2021'

https://churchillkentcofe.primarysite.media/playlist/aspen-larch-2021 

Why is my child struggling with activity books I bought them?

Most of the Maths wipe-clean books about at the moment are fab - the only health warning I would always give with activity books is that they naturally race children on. We teach with an CPA method:

• Concrete (using manipulative resources you can touch to count/group/order etc)
• Pictoral (draw dots/cubes etc to represent the concrete)
• Abstract (write it down in numeric form). 

As you can see, books jump to abstract because of their non-interactive nature, so just be aware and encourage your child to find real items in the home to support them. 

Where there is a number sentence like 5+5, find dry pasta pieces/ gravel/ toy cars and ask your child to count them out into piles and MAKE the sentence. As this age and stage we would never expect them to be able to answer straight away from their head as the idea is too complex. I have been making videos teaching parents and children about exactly this - they are on the school website here https://www.churchill.kent.sch.uk/kitchen-table-maths/

Literacy activity books can also be a little daunting for some children due to their lack of interactivity. Mrs Webber is busy behind the scenes creating handwriting videos to support you all at home and will post these ASAP. Phonics resources and ideas can be found at https://www.churchill.kent.sch.uk/phonics-8/ and the page also includes links to videos demonstrating how the sounds are made.