TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) – The upcoming school year will be anything but normal for students and educators.

That’s why the Topeka 501 school district is preparing for the year with professional development.

The district’s Associate Superintendent Dr. Jill Hackett said professional development is a chance for educators to continue learning the most effective ways to teach every one of their students.

“To be our very best for them, we have to keep learning,” Hackett said. “Our job…is to keep learning.”

Continued learning is more important now than ever, with the switch from teaching in the classroom to moving online.

“It’s almost like starting over…we have found that it’s almost like being first time educators again,” Hackett said.

That’s why the 501 district is rolling out extra professional development courses for virtual learning starting August 7.

“Because we know if they’re comfortable with the virtual platforms, their students will be comfortable with the new platform,” Hackett said.

Educators will be able to access the professional development videos online so they can make their virtual classrooms as interactive as possible.

“We know that students can’t sit forever, for 90 minutes, or 60 minutes, or even 45 minutes without a change in how we deliver instruction,” Hackett said.

They’re thinking about parents too, and some of the questions they’ll have about virtual learning.

“How do I help my child be successful from home, how do we log in, how do we keep track of assignments?” Hackett said.

So, they’re rolling out instructional videos for parents.

Hackett said they will help answer those types of questions when parents are helping their students learn at home.

“How do I use this platform, how does Seesaw work for my elementary child, or how do I get into Google classroom and how do I post their own assignments,” Hackett said.

The district said the parent help videos will be available soon.