• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Savor + Savvy logo

  • Recipe Index
    • Air Fryer
    • Instant Pot
    • Slow Cooker
    • Breakfast
    • Condiments
    • Dessert
    • Freezer Cooking & Make Ahead Meals
    • Main Dishes
    • Side Dishes
    • Vegan and Vegetarian Recipes
  • Tips
    • Substitutions
    • Air Fryer How-To
  • Printables
  • Shop
    • Our Printables
    • Things We Love
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Printables
  • Shop
×
Home » Printables

Distance Learning Success Tips {Binder Printable Set}

Published: Aug 12, 2020 · Modified: Sep 26, 2020 by Ginny · This post may contain affiliate links.

Pin178
Share
Yum
Tweet
178 Shares

Families gearing up for a full fledged Distance Learning journey are nervous, scared, apprehensive and skittish. Online classes during a time of crisis or simply a complete change of education delivery needs to be started with a different tool box and we’ve got you all covered with this 22 Page Distance Learning Binder. 

girl taking notes while watching her teacher on the computer
Follow These Tips For a Successful Online Classes School Year!
Contents hide
1 📎 Tips for Success
2 📒 Binder Contents

Our family has five years of remote learning experience. Our son went to online school full time starting in 8th grade and stayed there through graduation. It wasn’t the most popular decision and we received a lot of negative feedback initially from family and friends. 

Fortunately, times are changing and this education approach is emerging as a not only a viable option, but a safe decision for many families. Our son graduated with honors, was accepted to every university he applied to with scholarships and is currently a college sophomore going to university overseas…yes, even overseas universities recognized his online diploma. 

We sit here as evidence that it will all be ok. If you have specific questions or thoughts on distance learning, feel free to comment below or email me at info (at) savorandsavvy (dot) com and I’m happy to help in any way I can. 

pages of the distance learning binder over a white background with a button to shop now
Shop Now To Get Your Distance Learning Binder

📎 Tips for Success

Here are the tips and tricks that we learned (often the hard way) on how to make this type of education successful.

Keep an Structured Routine

Keep a normal school routine as much as possible. Go to bed, serve meal meals and get ready for school in the morning just like you do when you go to a brick and mortar school. I think we all had this idea that online classes would mean sleeping in, hanging out in pajamas in class and eating snacks all day.  It didn’t work for us!

Dedicated Space

Create a space for your child to do their schoolwork that is not a dining room table. It is important that they work at a desk and not sitting on the couch or laying on the bed.  It will lead to muscle aches and won’t allow your kids to focus.

Provide the Tools

Give your child the tools to “go to school” so they can succeed. Pens, pencils, notebooks, paper clips – you get the idea. Create an environment where your kids will be set up for success.  They shouldn’t have to search throughout the house to find a binder if they need it. 

school schedule worksheet with days of the weeks and 30 minute increments lined up
A School Schedule is Extremely Important – Especially for Hybrid Classes
assignment planner worksheet to handle larger, more complex class assignments
An Assignment Planner Will Help Organize the Steps to Completion

Be Respectful of Class Time

As a parent, please refrain from talking on the phone if it will cause a distraction.  Your kids’ education is the priority and we should respect their need for a positive, professional school environment. Don’t watch Netflix when they are going to school and don’t invite friends over for lunch if it will disrupt your student. Yes, your life just came to a halt. I get that, but all of those things are massively distracting to a young mind and they can not work under those conditions. 

Have School Time and NOT School Time

Work with your student to determine the hours of the school day (studying is extra) and stick to it. If you don’t, your child will feel like they are going to school 24/7 because there is little to no separation between school and play. It is draining to be in the same place all day long.

Help Them Navigate

As the parent, try to be the co-pilot. Watch and assist your older child as they navigate the journey – it isn’t easy and they will need your support. Younger kiddos need you to be the full-time Captain, but as they grow older, it’s important for them to start taking on responsibility. Try to teach them independent learning by using questions like “What is your timeline for xyz project?” or “I see your last two Algebra assignment grades went down, have you evaluated what’s going on and what can I do to assist?” They are going to be less defensive if you phrase your questions as helpful rather than judgemental. This takes practice for the parent – trust me!

Professional Clothes

This was a big one for us…no sweats. I have a human resources background where working from home means “getting up and getting dressed for the day” even if you aren’t leaving the house. Sloppy sweats create sloppy and lazy work. Have them wear what they would if they were going to school everyday. Jeans and a sweatshirt? Great but the sloppy sweats and PJs need to stay in the drawer! 

Lack of Breaks

Six hours at a brick and mortar school doesn’t equate to six hours in virtual classes. There is a lot packed into a traditional classroom day but you need to account for many, many minutes of useless questions from classmates, waiting for classmates to get a pencil from the locker when the teacher insists that everyone wait, etc. That doesn’t even count the 5-15 minutes between classes.

Tracking Mechanism 

Last but not least, a Distance Learning Binder to keep you and your child track assignments, grades, schedules, etc for this upcoming school year.

There are so many moving parts that it will be hard to keep them all straight. A binder enables you to create a calm and organized life! You’re more relaxed because everything is being tracked and so is your student. 

Using this will eliminate the sticky notes hanging (and falling from) the refrigerator as you try to keep track of the new school year changes. It’s not easy – trust me! Using printables to keep track of everything in a binder is the way to go!

distance learning binder cover sheet with fun doodles and inspirational quote
This Distance Learning Binder Will Help You and Your Student Achieve Success

📒 Binder Contents 

I’m going to start off with our signature worksheet. If you don’t use all of the pages, make sure you are using this ONE! 

Start, Stop and Continue – This SSC sheet isn’t found anywhere else. It is perfect for your Distance Learning journey. Each week the student and the parent will each write down what they want to start doing, what they want to stop doing and what they want to continue doing. This 100% changed our parenting style, especially doing distance learning. 

Example:

Student Start: I want to start getting up early to go for a run. 

Student Stop: I want to stop going to bed so late. 

Student Continue: I want to continue planning my week as it reduces stress as I can see what needs to be done on one sheet. 

Parent Start: I want to start setting up designated times for school. 

Parent Stop: I want to stop bringing school into every conversation so you don’t feel like you are going to classes 24/7.  

Parent Continue: I want to continue planning our weeks so we can keep the stress down in the house. 

stop start and continue worksheet to organize the discussion on what is working well and what needs to be improved to help you and your student be successful with distance learning
Use the SSC Worksheet to Improve the Online Class Experience

Weekly Planner – Spend a few minutes on Sundays and prep for the week so you can wake up Monday morning and kick start the week off with a bang! This will reduce stress for you and your student. 

School Schedule – If you are working with your brick and mortar school, this page will be crucial as there are so many different emails flying around. It will help you keep track of what time kids need to hop on Canvas and such. Get it all written down so everyone can see it and know the game plan. You may need to write this out a couple of different times to get into the groove. 

Password Tracker – There are many different sites your student is going to have to log into now and you need a “go-to” spot for all those passwords. Since the logins are getting more strict, it’s imperative that you keep track. 

Class Schedule – This is included in case your student is doing a HYBRID option where they are attending the brick and mortar school part time. It’s going to be tough keeping track of it all, but you’ve got it all written out here. Accept that things are going to be switched up and change so prepare to print off another sheet and just do it again. No big deal. 

Teacher Contacts – This is more important than ever. Keep in constant contact with your student’s teacher in case you need assistance – even if you are the family that “never” reached out to the teacher. This might be your year! For a distance learning family, your teachers may change as well and you will need to adjust the contacts sheet. 

teacher contacts printable page
Communication is the Key to Success

Assignment Schedule – Have your student track the assignments. Think back to our “old school” when we used to have assignment binders given by the teachers. It’s tough for our young minds to remember everything, especially when everything is new and keeps changing. This is great for first graders up to 12th graders. Kids will forget and hope the assignment goes away. (We all do, right!) Have them write it down. 

Assignment Planner – Teachers are ready for the students to embrace the bigger assignments going forward with hybrid and distance learning. Have a game plan to show steps on how the larger assignments are going to be executed. This is also a great time to start working with your student on how to plan projects and embrace that sometimes things work and sometimes they don’t – just like in the working world. 

Grade Tracker – It has been proven time and time again that if we write something down, it is more impactful. Have your student write down the grades so you all can track and if there is a problem with a class, you can catch it early. Distance learning can be tougher for a lot of students who do better in a classroom setting, so keeping track of those grades early is vital here. 

Study Schedule – Create a time that is still set up to study for tests and extra reading and/or assignments that need to be done. Just because it’s distance learning doesn’t mean it’s 100% done at the end of the day. I suggest doing this especially if you are HYBRID or only doing distance learning for a semester or a year. You don’t want them to lose those skills. 

Parent’s Cheatsheet – You need to be on top of everything more than ever! Put in all the vitals here so you can also kick start your year off with a bang. You thought you had a lot to keep track of before, but this is even bigger! Be prepared to touch base at the beginning and end of each day. That is the bare minimum if your student is a rock star go-getter. A lot of students are going to need more hand-holding through this jittery time. Just be their rock and it will all be fine. 

Workout Planner – This is included because with distance learning, kids tend to NOT move very much at all and extra activities will need to be incorporated throughout the day. Those pounds will add up quickly. Trust me when I say this! You don’t see it as you are with them everyday but they slip on quickly and you don’t want that to happen. 

Steps Tracker – Just like above, put on some sort of steps tracker on your student to realize how little they will move without making an extra effort. Embrace movement! Maybe it is even time for a Fitbit to keep track of the love of moving. 

Vision Board – Introduce your student to a vision board and create a vision of what you want this experience to be for you and your student. This can evolve and change so don’t “hit and stick” this one. 

Resources – You are going to be introduced to more resources, so keep all that handy information here on this sheet. 

Doodle Pages – Doodles help get out some of that energy! 

Spines – These are for your notebooks so you are organized. 

pages of the distance learning binder over a white background with a button to shop now
Shop Now To Get Your Distance Learning Binder

There you have it, friends. These are the tips we accumulated from doing online school for five years (before it was cool! 😀). We developed these sheets based on our experiences for all of you to benefit and help you reduce the uncertainties and stress you are feeling right now. 

As one of the quotes on the pages says: “We don’t grow when things are easy; we grow when we face challenges.” You guys are up for it! 

  • cover sheet of the student and school binder
    Academic Planner
  • dad teaching his daughter using a computer during a homeschooling class
    Homeschool Binder Printable Set
  • frazzled mom on the phone holding the dog with her son needing attention and the daughter playing with a ball
    Busy Mom Planners
  • lightbulb on a chalkboard and samples of the three back to school signs for heading back.
    First Day of School Signs 2022-2023
Ginny
Ginny

Hi!

Ginny Collins is a passionate foodie and recipe creator of Savor and Savvy and Kitchenlaughter. Indoors she focuses on easy, quick recipes for busy families and kitchen basics. Outdoors, she focuses on backyard grilling and smoking to bring family and friends together. She is a lifelong learner who is always taking cooking classes on her travels overseas and stateside. Her work has been featured on MSN, Parade, Fox News, Yahoo, Cosmopolitan, Elle, and many local news outlets. She lives in Florida where you will find her outside on the water in her kayak, riding her bike on trails, and planning her next overseas adventure.

savorandsavvy.com/about-me/
Distance Learning Success Tips {Binder Printable Set}
« Homeschool Binder Printable Set
Busy Mom Planners »

About Ginny

Hi!

Ginny Collins is a passionate foodie and recipe creator of Savor and Savvy and Kitchenlaughter. Indoors she focuses on easy, quick recipes for busy families and kitchen basics. Outdoors, she focuses on backyard grilling and smoking to bring family and friends together. She is a lifelong learner who is always taking cooking classes on her travels overseas and stateside. Her work has been featured on MSN, Parade, Fox News, Yahoo, Cosmopolitan, Elle, and many local news outlets. She lives in Florida where you will find her outside on the water in her kayak, riding her bike on trails, and planning her next overseas adventure.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Family Photo Hi! I'm Ginny and for over 30 years, I've been creating simple and easy recipes without sacrificing on taste for our family on the go. I can't wait to show you how to do the same for your family. Read More...

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Search

join our facebook community for printables.

As Featured In

graphic showing all of the publications that feature Savor and Savvy.

Popular Posts

bowl of teriyaki chicken over a bed of white rice, two chopsticks and sprinkled with sesame seeds

Honey Teriyaki Chicken Recipe

This oven baked eggs recipe is an easy fix for rushed morning breakfasts! These eggs are baked in muffin pans and are ready in just 15 minutes.

How to Bake Eggs in Oven in Muffin Tin {15 Minutes Meal Prep}

How to Clean Stove Drip Pans Naturally

top down view of a desk with three printable pages on top.

Dot Grid Paper Printable for Bullet Journaling + Planners: U.S. Letter, 8×10, A4, A5, A6 and Pocket, Personal Sizes

Adorable pet care binder cover sheet with paw prints and a grey heat

Adorable Pet Care Binder FREE 12 Pages of Printable Worksheets

After cooking, the livers will be golden brown as shown on this air fryer tray

Air Fryer Chicken Livers

Medical binder printables on pink background next to decorative heart and stethoscope.

Medical Binder Printables (FREE Worksheets Included)

This easy cilantro lime rice recipe will feed your chipotle cravings, without having to leave home! This easy side dish is the perfect addition to a homemade burrito bowl or any other simple meal requiring an extra kick of flavor.

Cilantro Lime Rice Recipe

Footer

^ back to top

About

  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Accessibility Policy

Contact

  • Contact

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.