{"id":3079,"date":"2020-03-30T13:55:09","date_gmt":"2020-03-30T13:55:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.gov.scot\/digital\/?p=3079"},"modified":"2020-03-30T14:45:54","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T14:45:54","slug":"tools-and-tips-from-a-digital-dad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.gov.scot\/digital\/2020\/03\/30\/tools-and-tips-from-a-digital-dad\/","title":{"rendered":"Tools and tips from a digital dad"},"content":{"rendered":"

Blog post by Jono Ellis, Lead Performance Analyst for the Digital Directorate…and a dad.<\/p>\n

I agreed to write a little blog post sharing some of the tools and ideas I am using whilst working from home before I was working from home AND also working as a part-time teacher for my daughter. Since everyone seems to be settling in pretty well to the working from home thing (with Trello boards, Zoom calls and Google Docs aplenty), I thought I\u2019d share how we\u2019re getting by on the temporary teaching front. I appreciate that we are unbelievably lucky and privileged in our situation but also hope that some of these resources might be useful to others.<\/p>\n

Mental health first<\/strong>\"\"
\nThere\u2019s no denying that this wasn\u2019t how any of us expected late-March to pan out. So many huge plans for 2020 have already been set aside, many forever. Seeing kids missing friends, family, classes, sports, holidays, camps, shows, dances, etc is heartbreaking (and missing out on friends, family, colleagues, gigs, events, holidays, night\u2019s out, etc is harrowing for adults too). And that\u2019s before the worry of being ill or the grief of losing loved ones – my heart goes out to everyone in those situations. Taking time to accept that life\/work isn\u2019t the same as normal and rebasing expectations are important for the adults and the kids alike. At a time that the whole world is finding unbelievable tough, it\u2019s okay to be finding it tough!<\/p>\n

Teachers are amazing<\/strong>
\nMy daughter\u2019s teacher, her school, and teachers in general, have been unbelievably helpful, organised, calm and rational this week (as always). The school is using Showbie<\/a> for their primary 5 classes. This lets the teachers communicate and share resources with the class and lets the pupils (or parents) message the teacher back. It\u2019s very self-contained for sharing files but also a great way to share links to other resources. With the resources to work on, and some structure, our days have been going well so far.<\/p>\n

Use the free resources<\/strong>
\nThere have never been so many free (or massively discounted) teaching and entertainment resources as right now – with bands live-streaming concerts from their homes<\/a>, free ebook trials,<\/a> discounted ebooks<\/a>, free online courses<\/a> and writers giving away daily readings of their stories for kids<\/a> – there really is something for everyone. Our main event has been some of the free exercise videos on YouTube – Joe Wicks<\/a> and Oti Mabuse<\/a> have both featured in our morning routine.<\/p>\n

Start some self-guided learning<\/strong>\"\"
\nAlthough allowing a lot of freedom isn\u2019t necessarily possible, trusting an almost 10 year old to do some work on their own clearly is – and has been a success. Some trust required! My daughter chose \u201cSpace\u201d as a self-guided learning topic and has already been learning about the International Space Station\u2019s food, sleeping areas, toilet paper etiquette and exercise. I\u2019m concerned that the next thing she wants to do is make space food at home but I\u2019m sure I\u2019ll get through!<\/p>\n

Keep it simple<\/strong>
\nWith all the tech that\u2019s out there, it\u2019s weirdly our dinner table, a well-worn Chromebook and WhatsApp video calls that are getting the most use – it\u2019s a clear surface and a simple browser for school-work and a contact list for sociability that\u2019s all that\u2019s needed. Keeping in touch with other parents is secondary to the kids getting a few minutes to hang out virtually with their pals.<\/p>\n

Context<\/strong>
\nConsidering the context of all this my last thought can go two ways – either you can cherish precious moments together or, if that\u2019s tough right now, you can remember that this isn\u2019t a forever thing and that we\u2019ll get through this. At the moment I\u2019m cherishing, hopefully it stays that way!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Blog post by Jono Ellis, Lead Performance Analyst for the Digital Directorate…and a dad. I agreed to write a little blog post sharing some of the tools and ideas I am using whilst working from home before I was working from home AND also working as a part-time teacher for my daughter. 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