Virtual Babysitter course or Home Alone course near me!

The coronavirus and physical distancing have pushed SOS 4 Kids to find new ways to deliver the Babysitter’s Course, Home Alone Course, and My Safe Life Course . We have adapted and students can now learn these important life skills remotely in a virtual classroom with a live instructor and participants. Virtual learning means that anyone, anywhere, even in remote communities, in Canada and the USA with access to a device and a reliable internet service is able to participate in a scheduled virtual training session.

What is a Virtual Classroom?

Virtual learning is an engaging alternative to traditional, in-class training. In order to remain physically distant from others, young people are able to participate in scheduled training classes in the comfort of their own home or at another physical location.  Students connect to other course participants and a live teacher simultaneously by means of a secure online platform, like Zoom.  Zoom has been able to implement many security features that keep participants safe during scheduled training sessions.

Virtual learning is about true engagement and in many cases caters better to learners with special needs or focussing challenges than a traditional classroom. Parents of children with ADHD have told SOS 4 Kids that their kids are able to stay engaged, focussed and remain keen on learning throughout the entire class. Classes are run over five days, 75 minutes per day so there is no time to get bored. There are features like chat, raise hand, thumbs up and down that help to keep the attention of learners throughout the session. Instructors use a variety of digital media, powerpoint slides, video, sound bites, games and quizzes to keep all learner types engaged. Moreover, kids feel included and are never singled out in front of their classmates for behaviours that often draw attention in a typical classroom. One parent wrote that her son with ADHD doesn’t always retain information that he doesn’t find interesting. But in this class he was very interested and able to give a detailed account of what he learned in his class. Comments like these confirm for us that we are providing a beneficial service.

Virtual or remote learning (instructor led and live with other participants) is different from on-demand online learning. If your child prefers an online course that is self-guided and self-paced or one-on-one with a caregiver, SOS 4 Kids does offer the Online Home Alone Safety course.

Virtual learning is more similar to a traditional classroom setting than on-demand, online learning, offering a more interactive session for kids.

Online learning is still a good option for children. For some kids it is a preferable learning platform as it can be completed by the child on his/her own or with a caregiver to re-enforce valuable safety messages. Different options are good as all kids learn differently.

It is important to note that while the delivery method has changed from in-person to virtual, the learning objectives of both the Babysitting course and the Home Alone course remain the same.

Ratios

Our virtual class sizes are much smaller than a traditional classroom. This ratio supports school groups who use our programs to support health and wellbeing curriculums. There are no more than 16 participants to one instructor. Our instructors are certified teachers, ECE and first aid instructors who have years of experience working with children and youth.

What do participants learn?

Babysitting Course

• Good hygiene including proper hand washing and proper removal of gloves,
• Safety
• Leadership skills and building healthy relationships
• Infant, toddler, preschool and school-aged child care
• Childhood development (milestones, age-appropriate activities and special considerations.
• Basic First Aid,  guidelines for medication, bleeding, choking (alone, baby, child/adult), compression only CPR
• The business of babysitting, how much to charge, finding work, etc.

Home Alone Safety for Kids course

• Street smarts and rules of the road. Being safe while out in the community
• People Safety including tricky people, identifying inappropriate behaviours or tricks used by predators, avoiding strangers, getting help from a trusted adult.
• Online Safety
• At Home Safety for kids including safe snacking and safe activities
• Fire Safety at Home (is your family practising what to do in a fire at home?)
• Injury Prevention and removing risks and hazards
• Basic First Aid

Safety Considerations for Virtual Classrooms

For SOS 4 Kids’ virtual training sessions, we are currently using the Zoom platform. We are confident that with recent security updates implemented by Zoom developers and by monitoring admittance and attendance closely, we are able to provide a safe learning environment. The safety and well-being of your children are our top priority. The following safety requirements will remain in place:

• An email containing the Zoom link will be sent to parents/guardians in advance of the scheduled training. These emails are not to be shared with anyone other than the registered participant.
• Youth will be placed in a waiting room until they are admitted to the training session by the SOS 4 Kids instructor.
• Only students on the roster will be allowed admittance to the training session.
• We ask that an adult be on site with the learner – they do not need to be present in the video, but they should be available in the space if help is needed.
• Learners may be asked to put themselves on mute but are able to use the Chat functionality to reach the instructor or unmute themselves if needed.
• Recording of any virtual training session is not permitted without prior written consent by SOS 4 Kids.

Feedback

Thank you to all parents and caregivers for supporting SOS 4 Kids and our instructors. By signing your children up for our classes during this time of restraint, you are helping our business survive and are helping to provide employment for instructors who may not qualify for government benefits. Thank you also for helping us get the word out about our virtual classes.

Thank you to the parents who have provided feedback. We welcome your feedback and here are a few of your comments.

Thank you very much for this course. Your course was excellent, engaging and age appropriate. You are a positive and encouraging teacher. I have recommended you to my friends. (Parent – Barbara)

Thank you! It was a great course, J…… was a little apprehensive about taking it but after the first day she quite enjoyed it and said it was much better then she anticipated, she enjoyed how interactive it was and how much she learned.  Thank you for providing such a wonderful experience. (Parent – Katherine)