Dear Parents, This year we will use a “Flipped Classroom” approach for some of our math lessons.

Rather than students doing a worksheet at home and possibly getting frustrated, students would spend 5-10 minutes at home watching me teach the lesson through the Google Classroom. Then, when they come to class, we can practice the concepts together. I will provide support to the students who need it and enrich the students who quickly grasp the concept. My goal with this approach is to provide more individualized support to your child. I have seen this approach used in many middle school classrooms so I am also hoping this will help prepare them for middle school.

Things to Note: A Flipped Classroom will NOT replace all of my whole group direct instruction. Direct instruction

will still take place when necessary, but my goal is to reduce the time students are sitting in their seat listening to me and increase their time for exploration and enrichment.

A Flipped Classroom requires student responsibility. If they do not watch the video, it is the same thing as a missing homework worksheet. When students log in through the Google Classroom, I am able to see who watches the entire video.

Getting Started

At the end of each video, there will be one practice question. Based on their answer to the practice question, they will rate their understanding from 0-5, 0 being “I have no idea” and 5 being “I’m an expert and could teach the class”. They will post this rating in a private comment, even if there is not a practice question. Then, the next day, we will quickly review the topic and use their private ratings from the video to form small groups for direct instruction, partner practice, independent practice, or enrichment tasks.

Here’s what students say about the Flipped Classroom…

And parents…

FAQS1. If my child is not struggling, does that mean they will never meet with

the teacher?

No, your child will still meet with a teacher! We are still doing math centers weekly. The Flipped Classroom is just giving me more insight as to how I form the math groups for the week, since each unit is a new challenge, groups can change weekly.

2. How do we log into Google Classroom?

Please see the following page 😊

3. Will the “Flipped Classroom” be used to teach a new skill or review an old concept? A little bit of both! I’m going to be flexible with this approach. My original intent was to use this to teach new content. But some concepts are so complex, that I may use these videos to break up the instruction and take things step-by-step. I like the fact that the students can access the instruction whenever they need it. I also like that students can catch up, even if they missed class.

4. How often will we be using the Flipped Classroom approach? I will adjust accordingly based on student understanding.

How students log into the Google Classroom:

1. Go to the Sycolin Creek homepage2. Click the LCPS Go Icon3. Log in using their strong password4. Click on the Google Classroom icon5. A few things may happen.

a. Option 1: Their Google Classroom will immediately open up.b. Option 2: Another family member’s Google Classroom may open up, check the top right

corner to see who is logged in, and then switch accounts if needed.c. Option 3: They are brought to another login screen. Their password is their

lunch number@lcps.org (ex: 123456@lcps.org). Password: four-digit birthday.**A common issue that occurs is that when students log in at home, it automatically does their lunchnumber@gmail.com instead of lcps.org, please check to make sure it is lcps.org.

1. CHECK THE TOP RIGHT CORNER TO MAKE SURE THE INTIAL/ICON IS THEIRS *A lot of times, other family members are still logged in through Google in some way, so then students get frustrated when their Google Classroom doesn’t automatically pop up.

Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns regarding the Flipped Classroom. I know this may be a big change, but it was a huge success last year! I appreciate your input 😊

Thank you!Mrs. Sundheimer