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7/26/12. tracking tips and tricks to help balance your life. What is “Tracking”? . I monitor student progress daily/weekly to ensure 4 goals: Students are submitting assignments Single digit overdue monthly calls Withdraw as few students as possible
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7/26/12 tracking tips and tricks to help balance your life
What is “Tracking”? • I monitor student progress daily/weekly to • ensure 4 goals: • Students are submitting assignments • Single digit overdue monthly calls • Withdraw as few students as possible • Hit my target number of completions weekly End goal is always to reach or exceed my credit minimum!
What does my week look like? • It starts on Sunday evening! • -Try to clear gradingfrom weekend (Mondays can be crazy so working a little Sunday night especially in the beginning is a great habit to get into) • -Handwrite or use excel to make call lists for the week • -Weekly update to students-super important so your students get to know you Take advantage of being able to work from home, and set yourself up for success! If you can do something during non-call hours, DO IT! This will leave your days free to make/receive outgoing calls and have fun with your family.
What does my week look like? • *Activate students and send activation email reminder • *Grace period monitoring to see who did not do required work for the past week and call those students • *Welcome calls & second attempt welcome calls/emails • *Scroll through VSA to familiarize yourself with your students • 9:30-11:00am*Outgoing calls to homeschool students, parents for mc • *Call anyone you have WNG or WF/CF to let them know • 11-3pm*Try to answer as many incoming calls/texts as possible, no outgoing calls/work on grading leftover from week-end • 3-4:30pm*Outgoing calls to priority 1 kids for the week (alternates between monthly calls, CA kids, and non workers, students nearly finished) • 4:30-6pm or 6:30-8*Try to answer as many incoming calls/texts as possible*Continue outgoing calls to priority 1 kids for the week • *Please know that if you start calling your students past 8 you will be training them they can call you after 8pm. If that is not something you want to start then get in the habit of shutting your phone down at 8pm.
What does my week look like? 9:30-11am, 3-6pm or 3-4:30 and then 6:30-8pm (Make your schedule work for you) • Tuesday and Wednesday – outgoing call times are the same as Monday *You may need to alternate priorities during call times: (monthly calls, CA kids, non workers, students nearly finished, or any IL priority that has been communicated) -Of course, there are meetings and things that come up during the day in our jobs -I grade nightly while I watch TV shows and after I get the kids in bed. (Make every effort to grade daily) -I like to focus on monthly calls and grace period calls on Monday and Tuesday -On Wed and Thurs I focus on no work calls and anyone I could not reach for a monthly call -I make welcome calls on the day I receive the new student but you can try to control when you receive new students FLEX DAYS: Thursday and Friday incoming calls, text messages out, call parents/students who have not contacted me by Wed for MC, any special circumstances or follow-ups, try to clear grading Friday evening. NO WORK SATURDAY except for choosing a time out of the day to return student calls/texts/emails. I like to check emails first thing Sat morning and then again first thing Sunday morning
Why I LOVE Google Voice You will need to setup a Google account. Basically, an e-mail with @gmail.com A Google Voice Number will need to be requested. This is a lifesaver-you can text much faster at the computer and be switching to grading/emails and then you can copy and past the texts easily into VSA. All GV features can be used with the GV APP for IPhone! Finished Text product
Why I Google Voice Can record your conversations. “AI” talks and DBAs. Can be set for a specific amount of time.
Misc. tips and tricks Texting Outlook calendar Flexibility Sharing who YOU are Positivity
Your challenge • Monday is right around the corner. Sometime this week, plan out next week (on paper). • When we return for our next session, I would love to hear what worked and what didn’t. Everyone here can learn from each other- we are our best resources!
All right, what’s up next? • Grace period system • Getting kids to cross the finish line • Purposeful phone calls Building rapport with students Grading efficiently Down the road: One Call Now Mail Merge