Google Sites for Virtual Learning Part 2 (Parent Portal)

Welcome back to part 2 of this explanation of how I set up my Google Site.  Today, I will walk you through the Parent Portal and a few of the other pages on the site.  If you missed how I set that all up, you can go back here to part 1 to read it first.

If you recall, I have the Google Site set up into two sections:  A Student Portal and a Parent Portal.   The student portal includes information specifically for the kids.  Things they will need to be successful.  The Parent Portal does the opposite.   It is designed to be a place where the parents find information they need in order to feel informed and up-to-date about our classroom.  

Parent Portal

Once the parents click in to the portal, they will see some top links to important outside sites.  There is an email button, one for our district parent page, and one directly to the gradebook on Schoology for their child.   All of those buttons were made using the "Button" icon on the Layout menu.  I simply linked them to the proper webpage and moved them to the top of the Parent Portal.

The next area the parents will see is a "Meet the Teacher" section.  Here, I recorded a short video introducing myself.  It is nothing special, just me talking and a few pictures of my family, but it makes me a real person for the families.  Since we won't be able to meet in person now due to the Distance Learning method of instruction, I felt it was important for me to show my parents who I am in a real, physical form.  

I then inserted a Contact Form right away.  I want to collect information (such as emails and phone numbers) but also gather a bit of information about the students themselves.  This form allows the parents to give me a little insight into the kids who will be in my Distance Learning room.  You can grab a copy of it to edit yourself if you would like.

After that, I have the bulk of the information set up for the parents. Broken up into 4 main sections, the parents will learn of:  expectation of 3rd grade, curriculum in 3rd grade, how we will communicate, and what supplies the kids should probably have in order to be successful.  On Google Slides, all of the information is housed. I embedded it on the site using the Drive symbol in Layout.  

The slides are chock full of the information the parents will need.  When they click on the slides, they will enlarge and allow the parents to read all about our class.  The first slides share the expectations I have of the students in my classroom.  What will our daily schedule look like?  How will they function on Zoom?  Where will they get their assignments?  All of the burning questions parents have will be answered here.

Then, they will learn all about the curriculum that the kids will learn this year.  With the uncertainty of Distance Learning the last time around, I felt it important to share with the parents just what we will learn throughout the year.  All of the books and curriculum we will be learning from will also be listed here.

Then, there is a space all about how we will communicate with each other.  Using email and Weekly Reports, we will stay in touch on the regular.  That will be the backbone our year.  Communication is going to be KEY and I wanted to set that up for the parents.  

Finally, I shared the important supplies I felt the students would need.  Normally, these are things I would supply for the kids...but, again, these aren't normal times.  So I am asking parents to have these things on hand.  I also put a link to my Amazon wish list here.  On this list, I asked for these same things with a note telling the parents that, if they can, I would appreciate donations of school supplies for those students in our class who are unable to get their hands on them.  I will be able to distribute them that way.

Since the information is on Google Slides, and I can edit it right there, if I change something or update information that is important for the parents, it will automatically update on my site.  It is just so easy to do on Google!  

If you would like the templates (and all of the wording) I used, you can get them here.  They are ready to go on Google for you.  

Finally, I included links to several websites where parents can go to help their children improve on various skills.  I figured since they are always asking, I would include easy to use sites for the parents.

OK...once again, I have talked A LOT here.  So I will leave you here for now.  Come back for Part 3 where I explain my Amazing Work section and our Classroom Library.