Important Notice!
Don’t miss the August 12, 2020 updates

The Just ASK Team is combing our files and writing new pieces in the interest of supporting our many colleagues who will be starting the 2020-2021 school year tasked with creating positive and productive learning experiences from a distance.  We will continue to add to this Distance Learning Collection and hope that you find it useful in your challenging work. Please feel free to share with colleagues near and far, and be sure to check back often. 

Distance Learning Collection

Ten Tips for Enhancing Distance Learning (Paula Rutherford)
Lessons We’ve Learned (Marcia Baldanza)
Parents as Partners 2020 (Bruce Oliver)
Maximizing Distance Learning (Marcia Baldanza)
The Writer’s Notebook (Heather Clayton)
Messages from the Children (Bruce Oliver)
NEW! Empathy in the Time of Coronavirus (Marcia Baldanza)
NEW! Tips for Promoting Student Engagement During Online Sessions
(Heather Clayton)
What Do We Do Now?  (The Just ASK Team)
NEW! Mentoring From Near and Afar (Paula Rutherford)
Tips for Recording and Using Instructional Videos (Heather Clayton)

Coming soon! Stop… in the Name of Learning:
Twenty Practices to Refresh (Bruce Oliver) 
Coming soon! Teaching, Learning and Leading From Near and Afar
(Paula Rutherford)

To access an article, click on the title.

In the News

Ten Tips for Promoting Student Engagement
During Online Sessions

Heather writes, “When designing synchronous learning sessions, plan on using that time for the construction of meaning. Avoid lecturing about information that can be obtained during asynchronous learning, and save precious online sessions as a time for students to engage in discussion and interact with you and each other. Make them a time when students apply their learning and gain clarity.” No matter which online platform you are using for synchronous learning (ie. Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet), you can use the transferable strategies she discusses in this issue to bolster student engagement. Read this issue now!

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Challenging the Process

The August 13^th issue of EmpowerED 3.2.1 titled “Challenging the Process” is now available. Marcia writes, “My favorite resource to use when teaching leadership is The Leadership Challenge by Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner. The real-life stories are relatable; the tips are useful and insightful; and the practices taught align to any leadership role.” In this issue she takes leadership practice three and deconstructs its components and supports them with resources from other industries, especially education. Learn more.

Access the archives and subscribe to EmpowerED 3.2.1

Mentoring from Near and Afar 

Paula writes, “Just like good teaching is good teaching whatever the delivery format, good mentoring is good mentoring no matter the format. Just ASK consultants and authors have been collaborating with and coaching each other almost exclusively from afar for over twenty years. The technology has changed over the years, but the research base and personal practical experiences have consistently guided us in designing and assessing our professional interactions over time. Whatever the age of our students, we all know how to do schooling face-to-face and many of us have lived at least part-time in a virtual world; a key is our future success in navigating mentoring from afar is the acceptance of a few realities.” See details in the Mentoring Memo.

Access the Mentoring Resource Collection and subscribe to Mentoring Memo

Just ASK uses a common language and concept system to provide a systemic approach to teaching, learning, and leading in the 21^st century. Thousands of educators across the country are using our publications and products, attending our institutes, and participating in our onsite workshops. Their application of their learning has led to more students learning more, more of the time!