Managing the work of absent students

When I first started teaching, managing absent student work wasn't too much of a headache.  Students just had to copy their missing notes into their notebook, or come in later and take a missing test.  

Once I made the switch to using interactive notebooks it became very difficult for me to make sure my students got the handouts, foldables, and other general notebook additions they needed if they were out of class.  I would have stacks of handouts (some days there were multiple handouts for their notebooks) sitting around the room getting lost or mixed up with the current day's handouts. Sometimes I would have students who had been out for several days needing all their missing work and I had to lose classtime to gather it.  I researched several different methods other teachers used to solve this problem, but didn't like or didn't think they would work for my classroom or my students.  I wanted something that I spent very little time on, that would also allow me to keep the paper clutter to a minimum.  

I finally developed "THE ABSENCE FORM".  I mean if I type it in caps it looks more impressive than it really is...right?  

In PowerPoint I made a list of activities in my class I do from unit to unit. I have a place to type their name and date and then the very beginning of the form makes it clear the student is responsible for completing the checked assignments and turning in missing work.  There are 2 forms on one PowerPoint slide.  

I simply have to place a check mark over the activities they missed and type in the titles of labs or tests if they missed those - I type them directly onto the PowerPoint form.  Once I have one page completed I can just copy the page and change names until have a form for each student absent that day.  I print them out, cut the forms in half and staple any and all handouts to the back.  I place the packet in the same boxes students turn their work in (I have one for each class period).  Students come back from their absence and pick up their packet.  

I often refer to this packet when students tell me they were out and didn't get a page or lab paper.  Of course they did 😉 and they eventually find it in their notebook.  
Employing this organization trick has saved me through several parent conferences the past 3 years where an initially angry parent shows up accusing me of not giving their child a particular assignment and it's my fault there is a zero in the gradebook...but when we open the notebook and find the packet filled out by me and obviously handed to the student the tone changes.  

Here is a copy of the absence form in Google Slides.  You can make a copy for your Google drive and then alter it to fit your needs and your classroom.  

What the heck is "the ICU list" anyway?

Have you gotten a text message about your child being placed on an ICU list?  Are you confused about what this whole "ICU list" thing is anyway?  What does it mean?  What do I need to do about it?  Who do I need to talk to about this?  

At South Dale Middle School we have a simple statement that applies to all students...

That's it!  It really is that simple!  

We do not accept zeros from students.  We know what our students are capable of and we will not accept less from them.  

Enter, the ICU list.  When a student fails to turn in an assignment to their teacher, the teacher enters the name of the student, the missed assignment, and a brief set of instructions into the ICU list.  The ICU list will automatically send a text message and an email to the parent/guardian of that student informing them their child has a missing assignment.  

The text message will be very short - just telling you the name of the teacher and that the student has been placed on the ICU list.  The email you receive will be much more detailed including the name of the assignment and any additional directions the teacher may have added.  

Simply, the ICU list is way for teachers to easily communicate with parents if their child has any missing work (or zeros in the gradebook) before progress reports or reports surprise you with a very low grade because of multiple zeros in the gradebook.  

Students that are on the ICU list will be given extra time and extra help needed to complete the missing work.  When the assignment is completed and turned in to the teacher the teacher will then mark the assignment as completed on the ICU list - this removes them from the list - and you will get a followup text message letting you know the assignment was completed.

What do I need to do?  Who do you need to contact or talk to?  Talk to your child first.  If they were absent, encourage them to talk with their teacher about a makeup time for missed work.  Maybe it's something they can work on at home and turn in at school.  If it's a missed test or quiz they may have to schedule a time with the teacher to come in and complete the assignment.  
If they haven't been absent, maybe they didn't finish the assignment or maybe they have lost the assignment.  Help your child look through their bookbag to find missing work or talk with them about what they need to do to get another copy of the assignment.  

If it's been a few days after you and your child have problem solved together about completing the assignment and you haven't received confirmation by text that the assignment has been completed, talk with your child again.  Make sure they have taken the necessary steps to complete the work and turn it in.  If they say they have completed the assignment and turned it in, but you still haven't received the completion text, it may finally be time to contact the teacher.  

Tech Tools for the Busy Teacher

Let's face it...technology does have the power to make our lives easier both at home and in the classroom.  I use technology to order Christmas presents for my kids without fighting the crowds and I can make sure that my home alarm system is armed without even getting out of bed.  If it can be that helpful in my regular life, it stands to reason I can use technology to make my professional life easier.  

I want to share with you 4 tech tools I use in my own classroom on an almost daily basis.  Two of these tools are completely free for teachers to use, while the last two are either free or at a minimal cost.  I know teachers spend hundreds of dollars a year on materials for their own classroom, but these are so helpful to me I consider them essential and their benefits far outweigh their costs.  

1.  Remind101 - Making School Communication Easy!

First, and maybe most importantly, this is completely free!!  That's right - it costs nothing for you to set up a teacher account, add classes, and send messages, pictures, and files to parents and students through the app, text messages, or email.

Teachers can either add students/parents manually or give out class codes for stakeholders to use when they sign-up.  Teachers can send class messages, group messages, or individual messages.

I have use used Remind101 to send pictures of project examples and answer keys to completed work, reminders of test dates or homework assignments, links to Quizlet and Quizizz study games (more on those below), and to communicate with individual parents via text message.

Even better, your Remind can be connected to your Google Classroom, Quizlet account, and others so with a simple click you can automatically send a message about an assignment that needs to be completed with the link already attached!

2.  Quizizz - fast-paced, multiplayer, competitive quizzes...and did I mention it's completely FREE!! 

Quizizz allows you to find amazing quizzes made by other teachers, or create your own quizzes and share them with parents and students. Start a "Live" game in class, or use Remind101 to assign Quizizz as a fun "Homework" or "Practice" task. 
During a Quizizz game, students play together using their own devices, but each at their own pace. Students compete to get the highest scores by not only answering questions correctly, but faster than their classmates. Use funny memes (both for correct and incorrect answers) add to the fun! Teachers can display the leaderboard to increase the sense of competition! 
Review your students' work when it's all over using Quizizz’ detailed class and student-level reports to understand where your students need help or extra review.
When you're ready, use Quizizz in "Test" mode to give a quick assessment (think vocabulary quiz) without using a single sheet of copy paper!!

3.  Quizlet - a tech twist on tried-and-true flashcards!

I often used flashcards to study when I was in high school and college - index cards with words on one side and definitions or information on the other. 

Quizlet gives a tech twist to this tried-and-true study method by allowing teachers to make study sets (or search millions of already created sets) to share with their students.  Students can use flashcards for vocabulary study, practice spelling, play learning games, test their knowledge, collaborate with other students and more to enhance learning and understanding.

Quizlet has a free version and a paid version.  The paid version offers lots of extras (obviously) for only $35.99 per year.  The paid version will remove ads, allow teachers to use different fonts to highlight important words or text, add diagrams and labels (very helpful for Science teachers), and collect data for teachers to use.

4.  GradeCam - don't take your grading home!

GradeCam turns your phone, tablet, or laptop webcam into an optical grading machine similar to a Scantron. Teachers use tests, exit-tickets, quizzes, etc they already have and simply add a GradeCam answer sheet students use to bubble in their answers.  The device camera reads the bubble answer sheets and provides instant feedback.

It does take some time at the beginning of the school year to load class rosters, assign GradeCam ID numbers, and teach students how to use the answer documents.  It also has a price tag - $15 a month for an individual teacher. However, I gladly pay this to have so much of my grading completed for me instantly.  

GradeCam can be used for T/F, multiple choice, matching, rubrics, even handwritten responses (I have yet to try this feature).  GradeCam will even save multiple versions of answer keys for a single exam. For example, I use Examview Assessment Software to create my unit assessments, print 5 different versions (my students are seated in groups of 4 or fewer) with the push of a button, load the 5 answer keys into GradeCam and then students can not cheat off the student next to them because it's a different version - or if they do, make a 20 or 25!!  Answer keys are saved from year-to-year, making it simple to reuse exit-tickets or quizzes.

I hope you found these 4 tech tool descriptions helpful to you.  Maybe you already use some in your own classroom, but if not, I hope you consider giving these 4 a try to make your teaching life a little easier and perhaps a little sweeter!