This time last year if you told us that our MiniBOSS team would be delivering most of our programs virtually instead of face-to-face we wouldn’t have believed you. As much as we would like to be able to predict the future using a crystal ball, no-one saw the events of 2020 coming. But with the challenges that 2020 has given us, it has also brought positives including the opportunity for change, growth and new learning (plus the excuse to binge watch as much Netflix has humanly possible!). At MiniBOSS we have learnt how to adapt and we have been given the time and space to develop something amazing in our new virtual program, News from Home.
News from Home is an exciting online program which gives students the chance to write their own news story, then step into the role of a reporter and film a news segment, working collaboratively with their class. At the moment we are in a place where many of us feel disconnected, young people miss interaction with their classmates and teachers. We wanted to provide a unique opportunity where students can come together and learn online while having fun.
Like when developing a face-to-face program, collaboration is essential (although it did look a little different this time with many Zoom calls and emails). As a team, we had to think about how to make an online program engaging. How could we capture the attention of our primary students through a screen? Games, quizzes and polls, interaction through the chat feature and calling on specific students to contribute to discussion, teacher involvement, and breakout rooms that give students the chance to work in groups, are just some of the strategies that we have implemented in this program. Planning News from Home was truly a team effort and would not have been possible without input and out-of-the-box thinking from every member of our planning team. Developing virtual programs has given MiniBOSS the chance to challenge ourselves, to think differently and opened up new opportunities for the company in the future.