Building student relationships is always a focus at the beginning of the school year.

But with uncertainty on the horizon, teachers are busy making changes and adjustments to their normal back to school routines.

Returning to learning looks different for every district, with some spacing out student desks inside the classroom and others setting up online learning platforms.

However, some things remain the same, in particular, the need for building teacher-student relationships.

Of course, the community-building work we do in our classrooms will look much different than in years past but it’s still a vital part of teaching!

In the spirit of ‘the best-laid plans,’ it’s a good idea to be prepared for anything, so let’s talk about the remote elephant in the room.

It is likely at some point this school year that we will be teaching remotely.

Whether that’s for a few weeks, a few months, or somewhere in between, we need to have a plan.

Community is Critical

School is about learning, sure, but it’s also about social and emotional connection, friendship, physical activity, and a host of other things.

Two factors that help facilitate the entire learning experience, whether remote or in person, are student-teacher relationships and the classroom community.

Theodore Roosevelt’s famous quote, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care,” is especially relevant to teaching.

Teachers know that we can persuade our students to work much harder if they believe we really care about them.

With that being said, relationships will look a bit different in digital spaces.

We can’t give a pat on the back and those incidental conversations and jokes are more difficult to have on Zoom.

Different does not mean impossible, though.

And, we’re teachers, for goodness sake. ‘Adaptable’ is our middle name! 

Let’s talk about five strategies that will help you build trusting student-teacher relationships and classroom community online.

Routine

In a classroom, just like at home, routine is everything.

Usually, we’d be setting up our schedules and preparing to teach procedures, but it’s all so different this year.

Children crave structure and routine all the time, and it’s especially critical right now, when nearly everything is unpredictable.

If you start a routine in school and then go remote, make every effort to maintain that routine as much as possible.

If you begin teaching remotely, or doing a hybrid model, create and maintain an online routine and schedule.

Morning Meeting

I’ve never done a morning meeting in my regular classroom because of time factors with departmentalized teaching but I think this will be a great add-on to my virtual learning plan this year.

One component of an online routine could be the morning meeting.

In person, students are probably gathered in a circle, but community CAN be built between students on a screen.

Take turns sharing, play a game, or show a funny video clip.

Reading Aloud

Reading aloud can help you build student relationships remotely.

In fact, this might be the best part of the day for some students.

Dedicating twenty or thirty minutes per day to read aloud is time well spent.

Sharing the experience of a wonderful book is a sure way to build and maintain relationships.

To hear about my favorite read-aloud social studies books, visit this post.

Technology

There are countless tech tools that help to engage children in learning online.

First of all, many teachers are setting up virtual classrooms online using Bitmoji.

Students are intrigued and excited to interact with this model classroom, which can be customized any way you like! 

Boom cards are fun, interactive digital task cards. They are self-checking and my students love them! Click here to learn more about Boom Cards. (This is my referral link.)

When it comes to lessons, Flipgrid is free and offers innovative opportunities for students to connect with the teacher and with classmates.

Especially for younger students, Seesaw has interactive features that are hassle-free and entertaining to kids.

Connection

We all need it, regardless of age, status, culture, or gender.

Making it a priority to check in often with your students can go a long way in building student relationships remotely.

This can be done via email, Google doc, video chat, or even an old-fashioned phone call.

Teacher friends, we’re all in this together. Let’s use every tool available to create a GREAT year for learning!

In closing, I hope this post has given you at least a couple of ideas for making this school year amazing, no matter what instructional situation you are facing.

I’d love for you to join my VIP email club for upper elementary teachers! No spam… Just fun, helpful ideas and resources 🙂

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