Running a Session

What actually happens, and the rules that are not negotiable

Start Here: the rules that are not negotiable

Everything else on this page is guidance. These are requirements.

📷 The student’s camera stays OFF

For the entire session. This is a district security requirement, not a preference, and you must never ask a student to turn their camera on.

There is one exception. A student’s camera may be on when a parent or guardian is with the student and asks that it be turned on. The request has to come from them, never from you.

If a student needs to show you a question or their written work, have them photograph it and send it, share their screen, or type it in the chat. Your own camera should be ON so they can see a friendly face.

Never do these

  • Share your personal information, such as your phone number or address
  • Share student information or identifiers with anyone outside the program
  • Arrange to help a student, or contact a student, outside the Homework Hotline
  • Forget to record the session. If you cannot record, tell your leader so the setting can be changed
  • Hand the HH chatbot to a student, or share the chat window with them on screen

⚠️ If a student is disruptive or rude

Politely end the call and inform the Homework Hotline leader. Depending on the situation, the student may need a different Helper.

Do not try to manage it alone.

The Shape of a Session

Before

Stay in the main Zoom room

  • Students join there, and the leader tells you the student’s content area, grade, and language preference
  • Good time to compare notes with other Helpers
  • More than one Helper can support one student. If you are new, ask for this. It is normal, not a sign you are struggling
During

Record your own breakout room

  • Start soft: ask about their day, a favorite food, a sport. You are also listening to how much language comes back
  • Say their name correctly. Ask how to say it, then practice it
  • Stay positive, ask open-ended questions, keep the student doing the thinking
  • Use the annotation tools, and let the student share their screen
  • Stuck? Use the Zoom “ask for help” button and your leader will be notified
After

Complete the Google Form

  • One form per session, not one per student
  • Upload the recording with it
  • Return to the main Zoom room and get ready for the next session

Zoom, Practically

📄 The work is on paper

  • Have the student photograph the page and send it, or type the question in the chat
  • Never ask them to hold it to the camera. The camera stays off
  • You can paste what they sent into HH and work from there

🖥️ The work is digital

  • The student shares their screen
  • Both of you use the Zoom annotation tools on it
  • You can snip what is on screen, paste it into a document, and share your own screen

📱 Showing your own work

  • Log into Zoom on your laptop and your phone
  • Your phone becomes a document camera for your own paper
  • Useful for working a problem out longhand where they can watch

💾 The recording will not upload

  • Email the link to rolveraalfaro@dentonisd.org
  • Use a laptop or desktop. Recording and uploading often fail on phones
  • Cannot find it? Check your hard drive and downloads folder
  • Forgot to record? Tell Martha

Who to Contact

For anything about a specific student, or if you are unsure whether something is appropriate, ask a person. Not the chatbot.

WhoWhereContact
Martha MendozaDenton ISD mmendoza2@dentonisd.org
Rebeca Olvera-Alfaro
recordings and uploads		 Denton ISD rolveraalfaro@dentonisd.org
Profe Mariela Nuñez-JanesUniversity of North Texas mariela.nunez-janes@unt.edu

What a Homework Helper Is

Patient

Speak in a calm voice. A student may arrive already frustrated, and they come with different academic and emotional needs.

Committed

Your time and effort are needed and appreciated by students and families. Showing up matters.

Resourceful

Every call is different. You are not expected to know everything about the content. You are expected to guide the student through finding it.

Growth-minded

Emphasize effort. Use “I noticed…” and then name the specific thing that is helping them make progress.

Respectful

Speak to the student the way you would have wanted someone to speak to you when you were stuck on homework.

The one technique that matters most: most of the session should be you listening, not talking. Whoever is doing the talking is doing the learning. Wait five to ten seconds after you ask something, and let the silence do its work.

Back to Start Here Teaching strategies