How to Use Zoom: Intermediate Zoom Skills and Online Social Skills for Elem. Age

Hello wonderful grown-ups of amazingly inspirational children! I am so excited to meet each one of you! I can’t wait to form lasting relationships with each of your children and help them learn and grow. Please refer to the bottom of this page for my classroom policies and how I conduct my classroom experiences. It is strongly recommended that you read through these policies and please message me if you have any questions. I love being transparent and making sure all parents know exactly what to expect when they enroll a child into my class. 

My name is Heather Swann. My pronouns are she/her. I graduated with my Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Oklahoma State University in 2011. I am certified in preschool through 3rd grade.

I have 9 years of classroom teaching experience. I have taught preschool, pre-K, and 3rd grade. My most recent experience was teaching 3rd grade for 4 years in Oklahoma’s largest school district. 

I have experience teaching all subjects but my true passion is teaching science classes. I have loved science ever since I was a little girl. In my classes learners will get to experience the wonders of science with engaging and hands-on experiments and activities. 

My teaching philosophy is that everyone is a learner and everyone has value to add in the world. Learning is lifelong and we should always strive to keep learning and growing. Mistakes are okay and should be celebrated because mistakes are the building blocks of learning. Without mistakes we cannot truly grow and learn. That is what is so great about science because so many mistakes have lead to wonderous discoveries. Science is trial and error and that is what makes it fun and exciting. In my classroom we will experience the fun and exciting process of creating and conducting experiments. I strive to push my learners to constantly be using their brains. I encourage them to keep thinking and that “I don’t know” is only the surface of their thinking and that if they just keep digging deeper into their thinking that “I don’t know” will blossom into a unique and special contribution to the lesson that is all their own. I love seeing that look of pride on a child’s face when that happens. I believe that to learn learning has to be fun and I am not afraid to do almost anything to make my classes as fun as possible! Even if that means getting up and being completely goofy and silly in some way! It’s not surprising to often see me dancing around for my learners or teaching in silly voices.

When I am not teaching I am a wife and a mother. I also have many fur babies, 4 dogs and 2 cats. In my spare time I enjoy baking, gardening, crafting, reading, painting, and catching up on all my favorite shows and movies. 

I look forward to meeting and teaching your child!

—Mrs. Swann—

****Please see below for my teaching policies****

CLASS BEHAVIOR EXPECTATIONS/MUTING POLICY: 

**If a behavior issue arises the learner will be redirected and reminded of the classroom expectations. If behavior issues continue I will have to mute your child in order to continue providing the best learning environment for the other learners.**
***On the rare occasion a learner exhibits a behavior where they will need to be removed from class (such as inappropriate behavior) no refunds or transfers will be given. I will also message you privately to discuss the incident.***

My class expectations are simple. I ask that your child please use their listening ears and raise their hand when needing to speak. (If your child struggles with that or is new to those skills I have a great class on teaching Zoom and online class manners to preschoolers!) I leave my classes unmuted, but I do understand that circumstances happen where you may need to mute your child such as background noise. Please feel free to do so at your discretion. 

As the teacher there may be situations where I will need to mute your child. Background noise is the main reason this would happen. I will always let your child know they are being muted beforehand and explain to them that they will need to raise their hand to speak.

Before each class I will go over my classroom expectations. If the lesson includes a slide presentation the class expectations are always listed there as well. My expectations are simple, to please use listening ears and to raise hand and wait to be called before speaking. I am a teacher that is used to teaching littles so I understand that these skills take a bit to master so for the littles I will use many visual and verbal cues to help them along the way. 

LEARNER AGE POLICY:

Note: I cannot accept 2 year olds in my classes. No matter how much they may want to take the class. No teacher on Outschool should be allowing 2 year olds in class. This is against Outschool policy. 

My classes fall into an age range of 3-12 years old. Individual classes will have their own age range, however, if you feel like your child will benefit from the class or is really interested in taking the class, I don’t mind them being in the class as long as they are not more than 5 years difference in age from the youngest learner. NOTE: Please check with each teacher on their individual policies on this. Not all teachers allow out of age range learners, this is just my personal policy. 

**************************************************************

CLASS PREPARATION POLICY:

Please make sure that you read the “supply list” prior to signing up for any of my classes to make sure you are able to obtain the needed supplies. Make sure that you have the needed supplies prior to the beginning of class. I will send reminders a few days before class begins to remind you about the needed supplies. I cannot offer refunds on classes due to unpreparedness. However, I understand things sometimes do happen. In the case of an emergency or event out of your control a refund may be issued on a case by case basis. Please message me if you feel like your case fits this policy.

**************************************************************
SIBLING POLICY:

If you have more than one child that is interested in taking my classes you will need to make sure you pay for each child to be enrolled separately. However, once you have enrolled each child separately your children are more than welcome to share a device screen to complete the class.

***************************************************************
REFUNDS/TRANSFER POLICY:

I follow Outschool's "Limited Refund" policy. Per the limited refund policy: "Full refund within 24 hours of class purchase or up to a week in advance of class starting."

**Please make sure you are aware of the time the class begins when signing up. I teach a variety of class times to try and accommodate all time zones. Unfortunately, I will not be able to refill a spot last minute if it is realized that the time of day was mistaken or the class was missed. This is a non-refundable policy.**

Policy for One-Time Classes
If you realize you won't be able to make class, within the week please submit a transfer request from the classroom at least 24 hours in advance. This ensures that another student has enough time to see the opening and enroll. 
If the class has ended and I am contacted after class about a transfer or refund, I cannot refund or transfer. However, I do understand personal and/or family emergencies come up and will do my best to accommodate you if I am contacted before class. This is to include internet connectivity issues. This is a strict policy because I will afford you the same courtesy by contacting you before class if I myself as the teacher have internet connectivity issues or a family/personal emergency. If your learner is withdrawn by you within the non-refundable period, I am unable to transfer you. Please contact me to discuss your options.
 
**Please test Zoom before class.** I like to begin the lesson as soon as possible and to be fully present with learners as soon as we begin class so as to provide the best class experience possible. I do not access my conversations or classroom comments on Outschool after the class has already started and will not see them. It is best to address any concerns you may have with me before the beginning of class. 

***************************************************************
CLASS RECORDINGS:

If you would like access to the class recording due to missing class or because you want to view it as a recap please contact me so that I may make it available to you. Recordings are not automatically posted in the classroom and as the teacher I will not get notified of a recording request from the classroom tab. Please message me to make sure your request is seen by me. 
*************************************************************
ADULTS ON SCREEN:
It is against Outschool policy for adults to be on screen during the class. If you must assist your child you may do so by sitting off screen and assisting that way. If you feel that you must sit with your child in your lap you may also do so but the camera must be angled in a way to where only the child is visible on screen. If you are on screen I will ask that you please move off to the side. This is for the safety of the other learners in the class.
***************************************************************
CLASS CANCELLATION/MISSED-LATE CLASS POLICY:

I will still teach the class with one (1) learner unless the class is a class that absolutely has to have more than one (1) learner to function properly such as a class that relies heavily on discussion between learners. I will make this note in my class description if this is the case. If the class requires more than one (1) learner and no other enrollments are signed up before the beginning of class I will cancel the class and send you a message asking if you would like a transfer to another date/time or a full refund. Automatic refunds are issued if no response is given after the original class start time. 

LATE/MISSED CLASSES
Classes will begin on time as long as there is at least (1) one learner present. In the event that no learners show up at the assigned class time, I will leave a message on the classroom discussion board and leave the classroom after 10 minutes. No refunds will be given for missed classes.  If your learner is late to class, no refunds will be given for missed class time and classes will end at the scheduled end time. Please make every effort to attend your scheduled class and be on time. 
***************************************************************
HONEST REVIEW POLICY
You are not required to leave a review for the class, however, if you do choose to leave a review I appreciate your honest feedback so that I may improve and grow as a teacher. What I mean by that is, if a class really is a 2 star or 1 star class in your opinion, please don’t be afraid to mark that. It will allow me to see that the class needs work and will allow me to grow in my teaching.