We hope your first day of home learning went well.
Yesterday, we suggested getting a timetable up and running with your child, to help them get into routines, and we shared various websites that can help to support you.
It’s completely understandable that you’re feeling stressed right now – most parents will be feeling the same. Here’s a few things to bear in mind:
- Combine home learning with some practical tasks, like helping to prepare lunch and doing the washing up. They can be added to the routine of the day and are great for developing a sense of responsibility. Try to invest the time now so your child becomes really good at a household job – first one, then another and perhaps a third.
- The ideas, and the suggested timetable we shared yesterday, are for guidance. You’re not falling short if you don’t quite manage to achieve everything we’ve suggested – we understand that many of you are trying to work from home as well.
- It might help to build up the timetable, taking on board something new one at a time. It’s important to really secure one or two things done well before trying to get it all right from the outset.
For parents of younger children, you might be reassured to know there are plenty of countries where children don’t actually start school until children are about seven. Some education professionals argue that in the UK we push our children too quickly down an academic route rather than securing really strong characteristics of effective learning. These feature in Early Years settings and they’re something you can develop and nurture at home. With these characteristics, children are well-suited to make good progress later on, so try to develop those at home.
And now a top tip… (and one I’ve tried out at home, too!)
Why not encourage your child to take a virtual mountain bike ride, courtesy of imoves? Go on a speedy journey travelling through forests and trees, over bridges and much more! Once they’ve done the ride, get them to think about the ride they’ve just been on. What did they see, smell or hear? How did it make them feel? imoves has a whole range of ways to support physical health and mental health and wellbeing, quick blasts of exercise to calming meditations.
(Yep – I’ve taken the virtual bike ride in my kitchen last night!)