Building Relationships with Families Using Mote & Canva was a highlight session at MoteCon 2022, presented by Stacey Roshan. This insightful session revealed how educators can leverage Mote and Canva to enhance communication with families, fostering a supportive educational environment from the start of the school year.
The key value proposition for educators lies in using these tools to create personalized, accessible newsletters that engage parents and help build student confidence.
• Effective communication with families is crucial for student trust and confidence.
• Mote can be used to add a personal touch to newsletters by embedding voice notes.
• Canva provides user-friendly templates to create visually appealing newsletters.
• Combining Mote and Canva makes newsletters more accessible with features like transcription and translation.
• Engaging parents early through newsletters can complement traditional back-to-school nights.
During her presentation, Stacey Roshan emphasized the importance of starting the school year with effective communication strategies. She introduced Mote, a voice recording tool that integrates seamlessly with Google Workspace, and Canva, a design platform that offers a range of templates suitable for educational purposes.
Roshan highlighted that gaining a student's trust begins with involving their parents in the educational process. Good communication allows teachers to set clear expectations and provides parents with the resources needed to support their children at home. This foundation helps prevent frustration and confusion among students.
Roshan demonstrated how educators could use Mote and Canva to create personalized newsletters. By embedding voice notes in their newsletters, teachers can express their tone more effectively, making the communication feel welcoming and personal.
1. Select a newsletter template from Canva that fits the needs of your class.
2. Customize the template with relevant content and visuals to engage parents.
3. Use Mote to add voice notes, providing explanations or greetings directly within the newsletter.
4. Utilize Mote's transcription feature to ensure accessibility for all families, including those requiring translation.
Roshan emphasized the accessibility features provided by Mote, such as customizable playback speeds and automatic transcription. These features ensure that all families can engage with the content in a way that suits them best. Additionally, Mote's translation capabilities help bridge language barriers, making newsletters more inclusive.
Roshan acknowledged the limitations of traditional back-to-school nights, which can often feel rushed and exclude parents who cannot attend. By sending personalized newsletters early in the school year, educators can ensure that parents remain informed and engaged, helping to build a collaborative educational environment.
Roshan encouraged educators to set intentions for their interactions with families, drawing parallels to practices such as yoga. This mindfulness approach helps educators remain present and focused on their communication goals, ultimately enhancing family engagement.
Stacey Roshan is an innovative educator known for her work in integrating technology to foster better communication and engagement in the classroom. Her expertise in using tools like Mote and Canva helps educators create more inclusive and effective learning environments.
From Stacey:
"Good communication with parents and families from the very start of the year can make all the difference!
I believe that gaining a student’s trust is the first step in building their (math) confidence, and it begins with making sure parents are part of the team. If a student goes home frustrated or confused, I need to know that I’ve given families the resources they need and a good sense of class expectations so that they can guide their child. Yes, we have back-to-school night, but that event can feel rushed and packed with information. Additionally, not all parents can attend. I’ve learned that emailing home a personal newsletter early in the school year can be very effective.In this session, participants will learn how Mote can be used to add voice to a parent newsletter created in Canva.
The embedded voice notes not only express tone and make the newsletter feel welcoming, Mote also makes it more accessible. With automatic transcription, customizable playback speeds, and even translation features, Mote ensures all families are able to interact with the letter in a way that works best for them.
This session includes a live demonstration to ensure participants walk away with all the resources they need to begin building a newsletter of their own."
Follow Stacey on Twitter and check out her awesome book "Tech with Heart"
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