Building Relationships Online

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I have just completed the first week of the new school year, and it was in full virtual-mode. I never imagined that I would have to teach online, let alone during a pandemic. Yet, here we are and it's what we have to work around or with. Thankfully, I developed resourcefulness as a child and in my first years of teaching; I can be prepared for just about anything. 

I have been in my apartment for five months now, sheltering in place alone. During that time, I have had nothing to do except figure out how to organize and master all areas of my life., especially once the school year ended and I faced days on end to either be productive or atrophy. I went with the former and decided to transform. From a professional standpoint, I finally checked off tasks that I originally penned a decade ago. I read a litany of books, which I will list at the bottom of this post. These ranged from textbooks to STEM to effective feedback and beyond. I knew I had to be proactive for the new school year, and that reading list is certainly evidence.

I did a lot of other PD this "summer", too. I participated in a few online workshops and seminars. I was tapped to be the Earth Science teacher this year, so I studied as many resources about the NGSS for designing some innovative and inspired curriculum. I had so many other goals to accomplish, like how to build environmental justice issues in my teaching and materials, enhancing the focus in my classroom on social-emotional development and learning, and have my students engage in more experimentation as knowledge building. I didn't specifically focus on those, but, through synthesizing my own understanding of how my "summer" research, I actually managed to hit all of those in some manner. 

I sincerely wasted no time in preparing for the challenges ahead. Check out my vlog for the products of my labors. 


Here's copies of my Student Information Survey and the Check-In forms. Additionally, here is a link to my Classroom Webpage. And my personal professional website-- Reflecting on Teaching. Let's get to the real point of this blog, how I started to build community and relationships with my students online. 

Icebreaker Strategies

During synchronous time, I have students keep their cameras on. This is important for me as I try to associate a name with a face, online. Sitting in front of a camera, passively listening to a speaker, is not an effective use of time. Or way to hold attention. A priority for me during this school year is to allow more student discussion. To establish this as a norm and something I value, I got students involved in sharing and speaking. Here are the two strategies I used to get them engaged (over Zoom), while getting to know them at the same time:

  1. Variation on the "Great Wind Blows": I prepared a list of twelve statements that students could either agree or disagree with. When I read the statement, students would do one of two things to indicate their answer without having to speak. They would leave the camera on if they agreed; if they disagreed, they could either turn off their camera or cover it up. I read three or four per class, and asked some of them to share something more about them, if they wanted. 
  2. Fill-in-the-Blank: aloud and in the Zoom chat, I provided students an open-ended prompt. Students would think of how they'd complete it and type in into the chat. After reading the list of all their responses, I chose a couple of students to discuss more of what they meant. 

In AP Environmental Science (APES), I am beginning the year with the Tragedy of the Commons. With the second icebreaker, the prompt that stimulated the greatest discussion AND ended up being a better introduction to the first lesson was "World Peace is...". More importantly, I think it is helping to establish with my students who I am and what kinds of things I value. What their experiences in my class will be like. What kinds of things they'll learn and connections they'll make.

Leave a comment below! What are you doing to build relationships and community with your students online?


Summer Reading List (professionally-related)

Science Non-Fiction
  1. Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. Neil deGrasse Tyson (2017)
  2. Undeniable: Evolution and the Science of Creation. Bill Nye (2014)
  3. Lab Girl. Hope Jahren (2016)
  4. Walden. Henry David Thoreau (1854)
  5. Environmental Science for the AP Course. Friedland, Relyea (2018)
  6. Baron's AP Environmental Science with Online Tests. Thorpe (2017)
  7. Breasts: A Natural and Unnatural History. Florence Williams (2012)
  8. Rabid: A Cultural History of the World's Most Diabolical Virus. Bill Waski (2012)
  9. The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative. Florence Williams (2017)
Pedagogy-Related
  1. The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure. Jonathan Haidt (2018)
  2. Authentic Learning in the Digital Age: Engaging Students Through Inquiry. Larissa Pahomov (2014)
  3. Why Didn't I Learn This in College? Paula Rutherford (2009)
  4. How to Give Effective Feedback to Your Students. Susan M Brookhart (2008)
  5. A Teacher's Gudie to Cognitive Type Theory and Learning Style. Carolyn Mamchur (2005)
  6. Data Wise: A Step-by-Step Guide to Using Assessment Results to Improve Teaching and Learning. Kathryn Parker Boudett (2013)
  7. Making Science: Reimagining STEM Education in Middle School and Beyond. Christa Flores (2016)
  8. Brainball: Teaching Science as a Team Sport. Mickey Kolis (2014)
  9. The Field Guide to Citizen Science: How you can contribute to scientific research and make a difference. Darlene Cavalier (2020)

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