Since more than 80% of the human brain develops by the age of 5, children tend to learn most things by then. It is absolutely true when people say that education begins at home.
To ensure that your child is learning the right things effectively, you can support them in the process. Make your home environment as encouraging as possible. Arranging things at home in a way that makes the process easy for them can help them learn faster.
Read to your children every night
This is one of the best ways to help children learn things faster. It is a common practice from as long as we remember that bedtime stories are narrated to children. This was never restricted solely to entertain them, in fact, entertaining stories were narrated to help them learn essential things about life. In today’s hectic schedules when grandma’s are not always there, you can read to your child every night to help them learn faster.
Teach through every day things
Concepts of science, social studies, maths, etc. are hidden in everything we do every day. Helping children take interest in these day-to-day activities to find the relationship with studies can be beneficial. Phenomena such as day and night, rains, etc. can also be explained to them with logical reasoning instead of make-believe stories. This will increase their curiosity and help them learn more things.
Be patient and let them do it
It is certainly a another mind-numbing task or group of tasks in your already hectic schedule but this is the best way to help them learn. Even though it might be very tedious and messy for you at the beginning but let them do things. Let them brush their teeth, let them eat their food, let them tidy their room. With time and your patience, they’ll feel encouraged to do these things. Eventually, these will become their habits with regular efforts.
Be the enthusiastic role model
It is no secret that children learn what they see around. No wonder why elders try to model the good things to children and keep the bad away from them. If you show your enthusiastic learner self to your child, chances are, they’ll try to adopt the same behaviour. It is thus necessary to model what’s right and necessary to young children. They’ll pick up certain behaviours that encourage learning from you.
Reduce TV time
We’re all aware of what harm increased exposure to Television does. Yet we let our children watch extended hours of TV to keep them occupied. Not only does this keep them from using their time productively but also lead to a lot of health issues in the long run. It also decreases their ability to learn new things with more focus. Instead, what you can do to keep them occupied is make them sit with creative toys and colour books or puzzles.
Play more games
Since TV is out of the list now, you can sit with them and play board games or help them solve puzzles. If there’s a tad extra time you’ve got, create your own treasure hunt games at home to help them find their favourite things.
Don’t forget the father’s input
Typically moms are the ones who usually help out with homework or volunteer at the school, however Dad’s encouragement and support are equally important. Fathers love it and the children adore having a more personal interaction with them differently. They find it more about learning when both the parents involve with their life.
Focus on process and growth not results
Results are certainly an important measure to know how children are growing, but it is not the only way. What is more important is to focus on the learning curve and the improvements. So if your kid scores 80% and you expected a 90+, don’t discourage or get mad at them. Analyse their performance as per their preparation and the way they performed earlier. Ask them what do they find difficult and help them accordingly instead of scolding for not matching your expectations.
Cushion the criticism
Protecting children from criticism is not always an option. We know it well that growth is a hidden aspect of criticism. However, instead of going all harsh, try to soften it in terms of encouragement. When others criticize them, teach them to see the good of that.
Work on things together that interest them
Children often find tasks with missions very fascinating. Create innovative projects for yourself and your child to complete it together. This can be something that interest them as well as you. At Marigold International School, we aim to take a similar approach to do our best to help students learn.
