Building Community
This week we talked about building an online community and what impacts it could have on learning. Building an online community when all students are not in the classroom can create a feeling of belonging and acceptance.
During Covid, I as a teacher felt a loss of community as well. As the time away from school kept increasing we as a staff were struggling so we developed a
“coffee break time” through an online platform. This was an optional meeting to join but it gave everyone the opportunity to connect and actually see fellow staff members. You don’t realize how much you actually miss the collegiality until it is removed from you due to extenuating circumstances. I believe that one thing that Covid has taught us is the importance of feeling part of a community!
Please click on the link below as it list great ideas to help build community in your online platform.
25 Community-Building Activities for Virtual Classrooms
More Community Building Activities
- Morning Check Ins
- Spirit Week
- Demonstrating expectations
- Creating News Broadcasts
- Touching Base with students
- Reflection
- Presentations
- Office Hours
In my course I will use a few different options but will not be limited to just these. One thing I am learning from this class is that I am continually learning of new and better ways to incorporate ideas into my online unit plan.
Flipgrid
- Students will use this tool in each lesson
- The student to record how they have met the outcome of the lesson.
- Students can watch their friends posts.
- A fun alternative to writing
Google Meet
- Students will start of each asynchronous class in a google meet
- Some type of community building activity from above will be incorporated each time
- Students will have a chance to see each other
- Students will have a chance to ask questions
Jam Board
- will be used for students to share ideas and thoughts
- anonymous
- see what everyone is thinking
- nothing will be assessed from using this tool
4 thoughts on “Building Community”
Hi Lindsey! Great idea to change up the community building activities to keep them fresh for students. Also, you mentioned that students will use FlipGrid for recording summaries. This is such a great idea! It gives students a break from writing, but also a creative way for them to interact with each other. In addition, I feel like vlogging or short-form videos would add a lot more authenticity to student summaries. Plus, you can visually see their excitement (or indifference) with the topic you are covering.
Hi Lindsey,
Thank you for your easy to read post. I really like the tools you are using to build classroom community. I appreciated the “coffee time” as well with my staff. Just wondering about google meet, does it have the same option as Zoom to use breakout rooms? I think it would be an easier option for students as it is right in google classroom.
Thanks,
Kendra
Hi Lindsey! Thanks for the interesting post. I’m also going to use Flipgrid as an engagement tool in my module, have you tried it with your students before? I also really appreciated the links to other blogs, so many great ideas!
Hi Lindsey, what a great post! It was so easy to read and had a lot of great ideas. I really appreciated how you included so many ideas for creating connection with students. One of my favourite suggestions is a simple check-in- it portrays that you care in so many ways while also allowing you time to get to know your students better. I love how your staff created the check-in time for themselves with the “coffee break time.” I also really missed connecting with students and other staff during the pandemic. I had not considered using Jamboard for my project but when you mentioned that students could comment anonymously I thought it might help to engage my shy students. Have you already tried this app? Have you had any issues with students posting inappropriate comments with this feature? Thanks for sharing!