Remote Learning Best Practices

1. Read—And Play—Through Student-Focused Online Resources. Everything Banzai has to offer is available online 24/7, and the student-focused content is constantly expanding. The interactive courses teach financial best practices through trial and error—just like real life. The Library is filled with articles, calculators, and Coach sessions, like the 50/30/20 Rule for Teens. To access these resources, visit teachbanzai.com and log into your account.
2. Add Supplemental Materials. Workbooks that teach age-appropriate financial literacy can be ordered to schools or sent directly to your home, free of charge (thanks to your local sponsor). Digital PDFs of the workbooks are easily downloadable and can be shared with students, too. Log into your Teacher Account and click “Toolkit” to download or “Booklets” to order the workbooks.
3. Take the Challenges. Banzai has created a slew of focused challenges that test comprehension and critical thinking around various topics, like Cyber Security and Savings Accounts. Students read the assigned articles and complete the challenges through Google. Click “Toolkit” when you log in to access and send the Challenges.
4. Use the Banzai Grading Interface. Assign and track progress on the Courses using the Banzai grading interface. You’ll easily be able to tell how far a student has progressed and access the scores from their pre and post test.
5. Encourage Real-Life Engagement. Consider assignments that put students’ newfound financial savvy into practice. For example, they could create their own budget after working through the 50/30/20 Coach for Teens, or update their passwords using what they’ve learned about Cyber Security.

Looking to level-up your remote teaching?

Try these ideas to make this year an unforgettable one for your students:

• Give students opportunities to get to know you better through personal anecdotes, videos, and other info sprinkled throughout your interactions
• Create a digital home base—similar to a physical homeroom—so there is one spot students need to check to see all their assignments for the day
• Make sure each assignment has all the info students need to complete it successfully, including examples, due dates, and grading criteria, just in case they log in after hours
• Instead of trying every supplemental website and tool out there, stick with a few tried-and-true favorites, like Banzai, so students (and let’s face it, parents) don’t feel overwhelmed
• Mix things up with funny video clips or anecdotes. For younger students, icebreaker questions, show-and-tell, and games, such as a video scavenger hunt or virtual whiteboard pictionary, are always a hit
• Keep communication lines open with your students as a class and individually. Try video messages in response to assignments and questions; it feels more personalized and takes less time than typing a response!

If you run into any problems or need guidance for using Banzai remotely with your students, Banzai’s support staff are on hand to help.