There’s really nothing fun about self-isolation to be honest. For most of us anyways!
But whether we like it or not, learning has to go on.
It’s an integral part of a child’s development and they can’t play and watch TV all day, all year round. Since things are a little uncertain and we’re not sure when schools will reopen, most parents have had to turn into personal tutors meanwhile.
It’s a good thing because you have an opportunity to shape what your child is learning as you interact. Learning doesn’t have to be boring and cliché. Try these techniques to make it more interesting for your children.
Use toys
Children will always love their toys. You can head to the store and buy some educational toys or even make some at home with simple items like cardboard, markers and paint.
You should involve your children in the DIY process and give them an opportunity to have creative direction over what games they would love.
You could play the number game for math, color games so they can identify them correctly and any other creative game that would sharpen their young minds.
Song and dance
Using songs and fun dances is a great way to boost their memory skills. It’s much easier to remember something through song as compared to bland numbers and words in a book.
Do this for those areas where they’re having some trouble and within a short time, they’ll become pros.
Positive reinforcement
Don’t forget to encourage them as you continue with their lessons. I’m sure in school they have reward systems and their teachers also try encourage them every day.
You have to be their biggest cheerleader even when they’re struggling to understand certain concepts. They’ll be more psyched up to learn and they won’t feel too discouraged when they don’t get some answers right.
Exercise fun day
Keeping fit will always be at the forefront of education. But to be honest it’s not always fun.
Try and find interesting ways to make exercise more enjoyable for them so they will associate it with positive experiences. You should also participate to get a good workout out of it.
Story times
This is another fun way to gauge their learning progress at home. You can do short skits or read books with them while they fill in the blanks in the stories.
This will be a great grammar exercise for them to keep them on their toes.
Spontaneous quizzes and lessons
They don’t always need to know they’re being tested. You can simply ask them random questions at random times like asking them to number the birds they see or the colors they can spot.
You can do this when you’re basking in the garden with them, when you’re prepping meals and basically any spontaneous time.
Educative cartoons
There’s literally no child that doesn’t love cartoons. They’ll love watching fun interactive ones that you can easily fin all over the internet.
These cartoons will help them be on their toes and you can also sneak in some time to do chores as they watch informative episodes.
What is worse: a fake smile or a grumpy face?