Glossop Tutoring

These are uncertain times for teachers and children alike as the government considers the best way forward. One thing is for certain though, that for the forseeable future those children who are invited to return to school will only be doing so in a limited manner and many children will not be going back at all until September.  Whatever your view is on this, the fact remains that children's education has been turned upside down since the lockdown and social distancing measures became a reality. For the past couple of months I have continued to tutor children online with 1:1 and group sessions taking place on Zoom or Skype. The children enjoy the content and the interaction whilst many parents have told me how much they appreciate having some weekly input and time to discuss issues they have experienced home schooling. They have also observed how their children go into, "learning mode", during the online session - unsurprising when they don't have the

This week my home educated group of 8 to 11 year olds met for another successful session on Zoom. Prior to social distancing measures we'd been meeting every week at a parent's house and the children were intrigued to see how the sessions would differ online.  Now four sessions in, it's almost like we're still all sat round the table. We've adapted to the needs of the technology, using emoticons like the thumbs up to show when we're ready to share our writing or looking into the camera to show we're listening to each other's ideas. This week we read chapter 18 of Charlotte's web together and discussed ideas such as metaphor when it came to theme of moving on in the chapter. As the day ends we learn that Charlotte is getting older and less able to spin webs, Fern's interest in the animals is moving on to a special new friendship with Henry Fussy and Wilbur is up for the very public Best In Show award at the local fair. Having reviewed a vari