Month: April 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic is escalating everywhere. By now, most of us know the steps we have to take to protect ourselves from the virus – staying home, washing our hands, maintaining a physical distance and wearing a mask as a precaution buying groceries. In the midst of this, we are trying to cope with our new reality the best we can.

Adults, families, teens and young children in the CanLearn literacy program keep learning.

We know that learning puts us in a positive frame of mind that helps us stay positive, optimistic and hopeful. Over the past six weeks, we now understand that learning is the emotional PPE for our learners and our staff. The choice to keep learning rather than succumbing to gloom and doom of these unsettling times is important to all of us.

Last week, we were talking, reading, writing and learning about hope together. The more hope we can cultivate today, the better equipped our learners of all ages will be to cope and thrive in the months ahead.

The purpose of this blog is to share a few examples of the numerous positive and hopeful thoughts the participants in our programs shared with us.

“This time has been pretty difficult for a lot of us. Hopefully, when this is over, life would go back to normal, and we would appreciate more, complain less, be more kind to one another and better people than our old selves. I pray this world will find peace and safety.”

“Thanks for the great idea to make and mail cards. My kids each made one for their Grandparents. They all loved them! My Mom said she almost cried! Their Grandma and Grandpa said they put theirs on their fridge. My Mom called on Wednesday, and my Husband’s Dad called last night to say they got them!”

CanLearn has been helping adults, youth and children with learning, attention and literacy for the past 40 years. Learning doesn’t disappear during difficult times. It just changes direction. It becomes a powerful coping strategy, and it helps us hold on to hope.

So, be well, wash your hands, keep your distance, wear your PPE and KEEP LEARNING.

 

 

Release the Stress

Because stress is not good for learning – or living. Your kids may be as stressed as you are about life in the pandemic, so start with ways to lower the stress.

This document from the Alberta government looks at frequently asked questions that kids have asked. It will provide you with some ideas about talking to your kids about COVID-19. You can download it here. COVID-19 Information for Kids (PDF)

Instead of talking about isolation, think of this as ‘cocooning.’ We have a unique chance to spend time with our families, an opportunity for parents to model the critical life skills we want our kids to know: patience, compassion, flexibility, and creativity.

 

Set the Scene for Daily Work and School

Because most of us do best with a routine, set up a general work and school schedule to follow Monday to Friday that includes kids’ school assignments and parents’ work from home can keep everyone on track.

For example:

9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon – Work and school

12:00 Noon to 1:00 PM – Lunch

1:00 PM to 3:00 PM – Work and school

 

Times within the schedule can be changed to be flexible. Based on online work and school meetings, kids and their parents will have to share digital resources. Parents may be able to flex their time before kids are awake and after bedtime. This will provide time to support schoolwork during the day.

• Design your schedule around the developmental needs of your kids.
• For children age seven and under, blocks of supervised learning of 30 minutes at a time are recommended.
• For most older students, 45-minute blocks with 15-minute breaks for stretching and refocusing are ideal.
• Elementary children will need supervision and encouragement; junior and senior high students may be able to work with less supervision and support.
• 45-minute blocks usually work best for adults, too. But whether we can do it depends on our boss’s expectations!

 

A morning schedule could look like this, depending on the age and needs of your kids. Use different colours for younger and older children.

 

9:00 AM to 9:30 AM – School assignments OR 9:00 AM to 9:45 AM – School assignments

15-minute movement breaks – walk around the block, feed the fish, teach the dog a trick, fold the laundry.

9:45 AM to 10:15 AM – Assignments or skill development. (For younger kids)

10:15 AM to 11:00 AM – Assignments or skill development. (For older kids)

15-minute movement breaks.

11:00 AM to 11:30 AM – Assignments or skills development. (For younger kids)

11:15 AM to 12:00 – Assignments or skills development. (For older kids)

• Build lots of movement activities into the schedule. Kids are used to recess and daily phys ed. Of course, movement is good for adults, too!
• Post the schedule where everyone can see it.
• Be flexible and adapt the schedule to your family’s needs.
• Be sure that TV and digital games are turned off during the work or school day!

 

Have Fun Together

Use games as learning activities that add fun and develop skills during the school day. For instance, word recognition and decoding – Bananagrams, Scrabble, Quiddler, Snap-It-Up.
Sound and letter recognition – Family Literacy Activities for Parents and Children Ages 5-7 by Nada Jerkovic can be downloaded here. (PDF)

 

Extra Resources

Calgary Public Library – Digital Resources – Tumble Books and other great resources are available on the Library website.

Alberta Guidelines for Ongoing Learning

Calgary Zoo Live Panda Cameras

Calgary Public Library – Story Time for Little Ones

Resources for Learning at Home

 

With so much uncertainty at the moment, it is easy for kids to feel worried and anxious. Kids struggling with anxiety, ADHD, ASD or another condition may be particularly vulnerable given pre-existing challenges with self-regulation and emotional control. A child with poor self-regulation skills may have trouble handling stress and frustration or adapting to change, often resulting in anger, anxiety or challenging behaviour. Many parents are unsure of how to help. The good news is that just like learning to walk and learning to read, self-regulation can be taught! As parents, you hold the key to helping your children develop self-regulation skills. When children learn how to calm themselves down when they’re feeling upset, handle frustration without outbursts and adjust to changes in environment and expectations, they will not only feel better about themselves but will be better prepared to handle the challenges of life more successfully.

At CanLearn, we focus on helping parents develop a warm and responsive approach to teaching children self-regulation skills, guided by establishing structure and routines, setting clear goals and expectations, as well as modelling, positive reinforcement and regular opportunities for practice. In addition to the teaching of specific self-regulation skills, parents who participate in our programs are provided with a chance to share, problem-solve and connect with other families who are facing similar challenges.

Given the current circumstances, helping children find ways to cope with their emotions and adapt to new ways of life will be more critical than ever.

Interested? Want more information? Give us a call at 403-686-9300 ext. 102 or contact Jaime Gaber.

You can find more information about the Calm Kids Happy Families program here.

 

Online Resources and Apps that Support Self-Regulation and Coping Skills

Resources For Parents

Rethinking Challenging Kids-Where There’s Skill There’s a Way – YouTube Video

Think:Kids teaches Collaborative Problem Solving – Website

Lives in the Balance. Dr. Ross Greene – Website

 

Apps For Children

Breath, Think, Do with Sesame – Website

Calm (For adults and children) – Website

Headspace for Kids – Website

DreamyKid (Helps with self-confidence, anxiety, and bedtime settling) – Website

Stop, Breathe & Think Kids – Website

Moodtrack Diary (Two versions: social and private; more suitable for adolescents) – Website

 

 

This free online program is for youth in grades 7 – 9. Teens will get together to make friends and participate in fun growth mindset activities.

Why?

• You are stuck at home, missing out on many things.
• You have to navigate all your school work online.
• It is easy to start feeling isolated, disappointed and anxious.
• Playing video games all night and sleeping all day won`t help.
• Learning about growth mindset will be helpful to you!

A growth mindset helps you develop:

• Perseverance
• Grit
• Positive thinking
• Resilience
• The ability to learn from mistakes

The program will run every Wednesday for 10 weeks, from 3:00 – 4:30 PM. The start date is April 29, 2020.

There is no cost to participants!

 

Interested?

You can register by contacting us at 403-686-9300 Ext. 128 or email us.

 

The program is funded and supported by:

A question for you:

If you had to describe how you are feeling during these unsettling days in just one word, what word would that be?

 

Stressed? Overwhelmed? Isolated? Insecure? Trapped? Anxious? Tired?

Positive? Optimistic? Hopeful? Good? Fine? Bored?

 

As we go through this time of social isolation, financial instability, risks to our health and more, it seems impossible to describe how we feel in a single word!

Last week, we asked this question to all adult learners in our programs. Many of them are struggling with what is the “right” way to feel right now. The goal of this emotional check-in was to ensure that our learners’ emotions are acknowledged by themselves and others. Mixed emotions are okay during uncertain times, and there is no “right” way to cope with a pandemic. Another goal was to highlight the importance of learning to maintain their emotional well-being.

Adult learning programs at CanLearn are built on an emergent curriculum approach. This approach focuses on being responsive to learners’ interests and needs and creating relevant and meaningful learning experiences. Our program facilitators have always been committed to this approach in their day-to-day work. Now, they have come to understand and appreciate it at an even deeper level. They know that it will go a long way in making sure that, once the shutdown is over, our learners come back to their in-person programs feeling positive and able to learn.

This blog intends to share instructional materials that we have used to help adult foundational learners in our programs not only to continue developing their skills in reading and writing but also to nurture their emotional well-being. They are based on current event articles, informational texts and human interest stories related to our “new normal.”

 

Reading

Keep in mind that, depending on your learners’ reading level, you may need to rewrite some of these articles in clear language.

• Where to Find and Apply for COVID-19 financial reliefs – Website
• Coronavirus New Words – Website
• More Coronavirus New Words – Website
• Scams Related to COVID-19 – Website
• Stop the Spread of Rumors – Website
• Humour and Coronavirus Anxiety – Website
• School’s Online – How Do I Help My Children Learn! – Website
• Panic Buying – Website

 

Writing

Writing can calm a worried mind. Encourage your learners to write about:

• How they spend their time.
• What advice they would give to others.
• How do they take care of themselves, mentally, physically, and emotionally?
• What they did to help someone and how it made them feel.
• What are they grateful for?
• What do they cook for their family?
• How do they play and learn with their children?
• Send notes of gratitude to health care workers, grocery workers, truck drivers, etc.
• Write sidewalk chalk messages of hope, support and resilience.
• What keeps them up at night?
• What are the possible silver linings of this situation?

 

Emotional Support

• Make a mix-tape song list with your learners as your soundtrack for these surreal times.
• Create a self-care challenge with your learners.

 

Other Tips

• Keep in regular contact with learners through phone, text, or email.
• Use simple tools such as Zoom, Skype, FaceTime, Google Hangouts, What’s App so that you can meet with your learners “face-to-face.”
• Send your session plan in advance as much as possible.
• Use texting for a supplement to instruction.
• Make sure that your texts and emails are short and written in clear language so that your learner can read it and respond to them.
• Coach learners to ask their Internet provider for deferred payment or reduced rates of service.
• Practice real-life questions and conversations; the more authentic the content is, the more valuable it will be for your learners.

 

Facilitating adult foundational learning from a distance is not perfect. It can be exhausting both for learners and program facilitators because it requires a lot more mental focus. There is something intangible about in-person learning that just cannot be replaced. However, learning through Skype or Zoom or FaceTime has become our reality in the upcoming weeks. As practitioners, we have to work out our practice and ensure the content of our programs remains relevant and authentic. We all must learn side by side with learners in our programs.

 

We will get past this.

 

It is tough, but we are going to be okay.

 

Stay safe and healthy. And stay home.