Across the state, educators have improvised and adapted. From developing new strategies for remote and hybrid learning to adopting new technology and skills, they have continued to educate and support our students despite unprecedented obstacles.

Shared Success is NYSUT's way of highlighting our members' continued commitment to student well-being and teaching in challenging circumstances. These are instructional tips, how-tos and stories about how educators are doing their jobs and making it work.

West Seneca librarian works to keep her students reading - and to keep her colleagues connected via technology

Carraba began hosting Google Meets two to three times a week with teachers, fielding questions about the new technology required for teaching remotely. “Teachers were desperate for help. Some had never created a Google Classroom,” she said. “It was a huge, quick learning curve. We provided professional development.”

Kerry-Ann Reeves is a fourth grade teacher at Daniel Webster Elementary School in New Rochelle.

Teacher’s book deliveries make reading fun

Nearly everyone remembers the thrill of getting new Scholastic books -- and Kerry-Ann Reeves, a fourth grade teacher at Daniel Webster Elementary School in New Rochelle, Westchester County, was determined to keep the excitement going for her students, despite COVID-19 restrictions.

Beating the remote teaching blues

“I found myself doing wellness check-ins with students on most days,” said LaGuardia Community College math professor Reem Jaafar, and their concerns were not all about schoolwork. Her students are adults, living in a real world during a pandemic.

In Brockport, a feline helps kids with their feelings

If you told Brockport school counselor Peter Kramer a year ago that he’d be connecting with families through a virtual counseling office — or hosting “talk shows” with his cat Fiona - he never would have believed you.

Shake up remote lessons with Author Fan Face-Off

Author Fan Face-off, a book trivia game show airing Monday mornings on YouTube, pits a tweenage superfan against a book author in a Jeopardy-like showdown. Here’s how you can use the program to enrich your remote lessons.

Structures and tools for hybrid learning

Tools are your new best friends, says Kira Martelli. She uses a toolbelt apron to hold a variety of supplies such as bus passes, late passes, her phone, pens and whiteboard markers. The accessory helps keep her coordinated as she moves from room to room.

Taking care of yourself to help your students

A veteran teacher of more than 30 years, Kathleen Young said it is critical to make sure you are taking care of yourself during this unprecedented and stressful time. That includes not being hard on yourself, she said. “Taking care of yourself during this time will help you and your students.”

Make the most of your time in hybrid learning

Kurt Hassenpflug’s district is operating on a hybrid schedule that includes blended instructional minutes. “We’re all up against it right now. The reality is there simply aren’t enough instructional minutes in a period.” Here are some strategies and approaches Hassenpflug suggests to best manage your time.

How choir happens: singing in the pandemic

How are students continuing to learn singing when school is sometimes open, sometimes not? There is no playbook for teaching in a pandemic. But here's how one teacher in Amsterdam is making the most of it.

Support and communication are the keys to remote learning

“It’s not all peaches and cream, but I try to focus on the positives,” said UFT teacher assistant Mary Williams, who works with first graders. The secret is communication and support. Here are some best practices she’s gleaned after months of remote learning.

Hybrid Teaching: Assess, Instruct, Repeat

"With technology, I think it’s important to remember that when it comes to technology failing, it’s a matter of ‘when,’ not ‘if,’" says Kurt Hassenpflug. "So, what do we do when that’s the situation?”

How to stay organized and keep it simple

“Especially at the secondary level, we’re making assumptions (in this period of digital learning) that kids know how to do certain things and that might not be such a great thing,” says NYSUT ELT instructor Kathleen Young.

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