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COVID-19 Response

In response to COVID-19, REL West is working to provide evidence-based resources and guidance about teaching and learning in a remote environment, as well as other considerations for education during the pandemic. The resources below are organized by topic and will be added to as we respond to the needs of educators in our region. 

You can also access the Regional Educational Laboratory network's COVID-19 resource page which includes guidance and information from all 10 of the RELs.

Distance and At-Home Learning

Blog: Reaching, Teaching, and Empowering Families During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Read an interview with leaders of the Parent Institute for Quality Education, a family engagement and empowerment organization in California.

Webinar Archive: Engaging Parents and Students from Diverse Populations in the Context of Distance Learning

Hear from researchers and practitioners about promising practices to engage students and their families during school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Blog: How "Classrooms on Wheels" Continue to Reach Rural Preschoolers During the Pandemic

Read how staff in rural Nevada are ensuring kindergarten readiness and pivoting their programming during the pandemic.

Ask a REL: Learning loss during COVID

What does the research say about K–12 learning loss during COVID-19?

Blog: Addressing learning loss during the pandemic

Read about research on addressing K–12 learning loss.

Early Childhood

COVID-19 Resources Memo: Where can teachers, caregivers, and parents find free digital resources to support early math learning?

Access digital games, handouts, and ideas for teaching foundational math skills during everyday activities.

Video: Interactive Readalouds: Learning from books together

In this video, a professional development facilitator shares tips for asking effective questions during readalouds and discussions of books, models the readaloud process, and introduces a readaloud planning template.

Resource collection: Supporting Young English Learners at Home - Family and Caregiver Activities

Download activities that offer simple, fun ideas for how parents, grandparents, and caregivers can help children develop their language skills at home. Available in English and Spanish.

Health, Safety, and Well-Being

Webinar Archive: Strategies for Educators to Support the Social and Emotional Needs of Students Impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Demand for Racial Justice: Plans for Reopening Schools

Panelists shared evidence-based information about social and emotional competencies that educators can use to rebuild conditions of success for students.

Blog: School Social Work in the Time of COVID-19: When Human-Centered Work Moved Online

Read how school social workers in the San Francisco Bay Area manage their professional responsibilities during school closures.

Blog: Culturally Affirming Care for Rural Students During the Pandemic: A Karuk Perspective

Read our blog post on how a social worker provides culturally responsive, trauma-informed supports for children in the Karuk tribe, in rural California.

Blog: Supporting Students at a Distance: A Discussion with Two Rural School Psychologists on Challenges and Opportunities During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Perspectives from two rural school psychologists as they navigate school building closures and consider the return to in-person learning.

Blog: When Technology Brings Health Care to Students at School

Learn how school-based telemedicine makes it possible to keep students in school.

Parents and Families

COVID-19 Resources Memo: How can educators engage families in at-home learning and provide support to them during these challenging times?

Find resources for at-home learning, family engagement strategies, and tips for parents.

Blog: Engaging Parents and Students from Diverse Populations During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Learn about our recent webinar and hear from the presenters about some of the main takeaways to consider for supporting students and families during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Encouraging Girls in Math and Science: Three Powerful Female Role Models

Encourage girls in math and science! This family-friendly resource is designed to expose children in grades 3–8 to three positive female role models in the fields of math and computer science.

Family and Caregiver Activity to Support Young Math Learners' Understanding of Fractions

Download a simple activity for families and caregivers to help young children strengthen their practical understanding of fractions.

Resource collection: Supporting Young English Learners at Home - Family and Caregiver Activities

Download activities that offer simple, fun ideas for how parents, grandparents, and caregivers can help children develop their language skills at home. Available in English and Spanish.

Blog: Equity in Action

Learn how equity teams in five California school districts are developing their capacity to address racial inequities and create environments that value the cultural assets of their students and families.

Blog: Family and Caregiver Activities for Young English Learners: A Growing Resource Collection

REL West chatted with D’Lisa Crain, Administrator for the Department of Family-School Partnerships in Washoe County School District, Nevada about how she has been using the Family and Caregiver Activities with families of young English learners and with other departments in the district.

Remote Learning Strategies

COVID-19 Resources Memo: How can districts promote a safe and secure digital learning environment?

Learn how educators and families can support student safety online in three key areas.

Ask a REL: Evaluating Digital, Virtual, Online, and Blended Teaching

This Ask A REL memo from REL West includes research citations and resources on evaluating digital, virtual, online, and blended teaching, and on educator evaluation in the era of COVID-19.

Accelerating Learning

High-Quality Tutoring to Accelerate Learning Webinar Series

This free, 90-minute webinar will discuss the research base for systematic, high-quality tutoring and share a case study of how one nonprofit high school math tutoring program enacts evidence-based principles.

High-Quality Tutoring: An Evidence-Based Strategy to Tackle Learning Loss

As schools recover from the pandemic, educators are faced with the challenge of addressing student learning loss. In this blog, read about high-quality tutoring as an evidence-based strategy to accelerate student learning. Register to attend our upcoming webinar to learn more about implementing high-quality tutoring programs.