Teachers have an extremely stressful profession. They need to constantly engage their students and ensure that they are prepared to meet real-life demands and challenges. The ongoing Coronavirus pandemic caused schools to shut down for a while, and the teachers had to adapt to virtual learning to teach their students; it has not been an easy journey. Luckily, there are several online resources that teachers can use to make their online teaching journey as hassle-free as possible. By applying these tips, you can create online teaching plans that are beneficial and fun for your students.

Align to Standards and Objectives

Standards are extremely important when it comes to teaching. They are guidelines that a teacher has to follow to ensure that certain goals are met by the end of the school year. Each state has its own set of standards that schools in their area need to follow so that students are proficient enough to sit for the state test. When you are searching for online teaching resources, whether they are game-based learning activities, worksheets, or other material, you need to make sure that they are aligned with the standards you are trying to meet. Standards are basically goals that you want to meet, and objectives are the more specific checkpoints that you use within the year until you reach your goal. When your online resources align with the lesson objectives you have, it takes you one step closer to helping your students reach a certain state standard.

Make Use of Existing Teaching Supplies

It can be tempting to create your own supplies such as worksheets, or learning activities from scratch. However, this task can be completely avoided by searching for premade supplies and then adapting them to fit your lesson plans. As per the opinions of the professionals at ljharper.com.au, it is easy to find education supplies and packs that are compatible with what you are teaching. Existing teaching resources are quite versatile because you can use them in a classroom setting, and in online teaching as well. You just have to go through the pack or book that you purchase and edit it so that it fits what you are looking for.

Look for Reliable Resources

The first thing to do as a teacher who is trying to create a good virtual learning experience for students is to look for reliable resources. The internet is chock-full of resources that you can utilize no matter what subject or topic you are tackling in class. When looking for resources, try to find reliable ones that are provided by educational websites or official domains rather than websites that are commercial.  

Ensure Differentiation

This may require some extra thought, but even online teaching needs differentiated methods so that students with different skill sets and learning styles can benefit fairly. If the online resource you have in mind does not offer any kind of differentiation, you will need to either adapt it to make it more differentiated in style, or you can simply look for other resources. This is a rather important aspect of teaching, since not all students are at the same academic level, and not all have the same skills. Differentiation builds upon these differences and ensures that everyone gets a fair learning opportunity.

Promote Self-assessment

There are many game-based learning websites out there that are a fun way to assess how much knowledge and skills your student has gained from a lesson. Having formative assessments online, and promoting your students to also assess themselves based on the criteria you provide, is essential to their learning process. When a student is able to assess their learning, you are more likely able to meet objectives, and they have an easier time figuring out their weak points and working on them to promote growth and development.

Incorporate Accessibility

Online resources are great because they give a measure of accessibility to your lessons. Online resources are available for both teachers and students 24/7. Anyone can access online resources no matter where they are in the world. Incorporating more online resources in your lessons means that you are promoting easy access to education for your students. When looking for an online resource, consider how accessible it is to your students as well as their guardians. Try to find easy-to-use sources that will not cause technical issues for you or your students at any point in the future.

Teaching is full of ups and downs; it forces teachers out of their comfort zones and prompts them to be innovative so that they can engage their students and be successful in their mission. Now that you are aware of these six different tips, you can start your search for online resources that will benefit you and your students throughout their learning journey. By using these tips, you will ensure that your students gain the skills and knowledge needed to prepare them for their future lives.