Coronavirus: make learning fun from home

With schools closing, make learning a pleasure. Take a look at our easy tips on teaching your child from home.

Focus on the core subjects
Stick to the basics and don’t feel the need to overcomplicate things. The obvious important subjects are Maths and English so prioritise these and anything else you can cover is a bonus. There is an abundance of free learning resources online so use these for some guidance and adapt them to your child’s learning level.

Make it fun
There’s loads of great ways to introduce education without making it feel like learning. Science can be taught by performing experiments and History could be covered by watching Horrible Histories. Don’t be afraid to let your child use apps or websites to aide their learning. Screen time isn’t always bad!

Keep some structure
Children work best when there’s a routine so it’s important to keep some kind of structure. Create a timetable of learning hours and break this up with playtime to keep your child focused (and to give you a break!). It could also help to create a learning space, such as the dining room, so that the children know when they’re there that they are ‘at school’.

Think outside the box
Use this as an opportunity to teach your child things they wouldn’t usually learn at school. Think outside the box and have a bit of fun. Head to the kitchen for some baking. This not only covers food tech, but Maths is involved in weighing ingredients and Science in mixing!

Explain why this is important
Children who are excited about the prospect of no school for a while will not take kindly to their parent becoming their teacher too, so explain to them why it is important to keep learning at home. Phrases such as “we’re doing this to help you and the teachers” should convince even stubborn learners to try some home learning.

Most importantly, remember you’re not a trained teacher and you can only do what you can do. Everybody is in the same situation at the moment so don’t fret that your child will be falling behind. In time life will go back to normal and your child will be able to catch out on anything they’ve missed out on.

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