How To Use Playlists To Plan For Students Being Out

Students have always missed school.

Whether it be sickness, vacation, a dentist appointment, early dismissal for a game - there have always been situations when students were going to be out and miss the class time.

The pandemic has only compounded this issue in many areas.

Similarly, teachers have always been out as well. And, if you are like me, it was always more work to be out and leave plans for a substitute than being in the classroom with the students.

There is a solution that can be used for this situation for students in every grade level, every subject area, that you are most likely already doing pieces of as a teacher.

It’s called a “Playlist” and it makes a ton of sense. It is one of the many strategies and structures shared in the new book, Adaptable.

What Is A Playlist?

To keep it short: A playlist is a planned out list of learning activities (with resources/material) that both the student and the teacher have access to at all times.

This is similar to what many of us do with learning management systems such as Google Classroom, Canvas, Schoology, or even Seesaw.

Here’s how Catlin Tucker, author of Power Up Blended Learning (and the Getting Started with Blending Learning Course) describes what makes a Playlist stand out from other blended learning strategies:

The playlist concept stems from the Individual Rotation Model in which each student works from an individual playlist of activities. I’ve used playlists for formal writing, grammar, and projects. The goal of the playlist model is to allow students some control over the pace and path of their learning.

When I design a playlist, I always start with a template. I include all of the activities that I believe MOST students will benefit from then I customize individual playlists to ensure that students who need additional scaffolding receive it and those who are ready for next challenge get it.

Playlists pull together a mix of activities designed to build specific skills. Students control the pace of their learning and teachers can customize individual learning paths with the playlist model.

In her blogpost on Building a Playlist, Catlin shares one of her templates and examples for how this might work:

How To Use Playlists For Students Missing Class

Now, I hope you can see the benefits of the Playlist learning structure for all students, but especially for those missing class.

When you create a Learning Playlist and share it with your students they have the option to go at their own pace and choose activities that they can do individually and ask for help on the activities that may challenge them.

If a student, teacher, and caretaker all have access to this playlist, there is no hiccup in the learning process.

Miss class because of a game? Just pick up on the playlist where you left off.

Out for an extended period of time? Check-in with the teacher periodically as you go through the playlist.

The teacher misses a day of class? Students already know what is expected and what they are working on, and the teacher is able to check progress when they return.

This doesn’t mean you are getting rid of all direct instruction. It doesn’t mean there aren’t breaks in the playlist for whole group activities. It sets up the learning to have a beginning, middle, and end that all stakeholders can see regardless of what situation they are currently going through.

That is the benefit of the playlist model, and right now it is being used by many teachers around the world to build meaningful learning experiences in all kinds of situations.

Would love to hear your thoughts and experiences (or examples) in the comments below!