As humans, we start learning from the day we are born and the journey never ends. However, there is no question that our formative years play an integral role that provides a foundation for life. As a parent, then, supporting your child’s development from an early age is vital.
You’ve already guided your little angel through the baby stage and toddler phase. Still, the real fun starts when they begin school. If your child entered reception in September, they should now be settling into the concept of school. While their teachers will do a fantastic job, parents will have a crucial role to play.
Here are eight great ways to support your child now while also keeping one eye on the more structured learning that will follow once they hit year one.
Make Learning The Reward
Of course, kids should be rewarded when they succeed or complete a task well. Nonetheless, if you want your child to develop healthy relationships with learning, the journey needs to be seen as enjoyable. Not simply something that must be completed to unlock a reward.
As a parent, you can make learning at home feel like a reward in many different ways. Reading together, for example, is time that your child will cherish. Day trips to educational play centres and venues suitable for youngsters create magical memories. In turn, your son or daughter will actively have them asking for more.
When supported by the idea of celebrating the new knowledge or attainment, your child’s mindset will be more positive. Even at an early age.
Help Develop Learning Tactics
It is important for children to learn about specific topics as they get older. At this age, though, establishing the platform for them to build upon is far more significant. So, parents should emphasise learning strategies and patterns that will support their child for life.
Learning rote numbers is a great example. Aside from counting, it is an ideal way to make pattern detection more accessible by counting odds/evens or backwards. Similarly, it helps them quantify objects in the real world. Crucially, you should try to combine elements of auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learning.
Another very effective strategy is to ask open ended questions that encourage your child to think and expand on their ideas.
Inject Learning Into Their Hobbies & Interests
As already mentioned, learning should be fun, especially at a young age. One of the best ways to achieve this is to learn through their hobbies. If your child loves music or dance, for example, it is a great way to learn the rote numbers. Likewise, memory skills and discipline are enhanced by routines.
Alternatively, if your young child loves a certain Disney film, you can use it to learn about a location. For example, Lilo and Stitch can be used as a gateway to learning about Hawaii. Most kids’ movies can also teach life lessons and give insights into animals. Even as a reception child, they’ll absorb more than you could imagine.
Sports fans can learn about different colours from the kits. This can subsequently move into learning the names of countries – and eventually flags – of the players.
Consider Private Tutoring
The importance of time spent learning from you cannot be emphasised enough. Nevertheless, working with outsiders can be very beneficial too. Your child already gains support from multiple perspectives as they learn with their teacher. But hiring a private tutor takes this to the next level.
While many people appreciate the benefits of hiring a tutor for GCSEs, they underestimate how it can impact younger kids. Tutors give one-on-one attention to the student. So, they get the best of both worlds. The professional elements that they receive from a teacher plus the increased focus of parent-led tutoring.
At this age, private tutoring is likely to focus on arithmetic, reading, writing, and other fundamentals. It should also send confidence levels through the roof.
Focus On Healthy Body, Healthy Mind
The body and mind are very closely linked. So, investing in your child’s health will give them the strongest foundation for learning. Everything from their mood and energy levels to focus and capacity for learning can be affected. First and foremost, you must try to establish healthy sleep patterns for your child.
Following this, it’s important to place a focus on nutrition and exercise. Regular exercise enhances cognitive function and has been linked to improved scores in maths and English. Likewise, the improved energy levels can only have a positive impact. Athletic activities also open the door to learning about the body.
Nutrition is equally important. Not least because it ensures that the brain and organs have all the necessary nutrients and vitamins to perform.
Integrate Education Into Daily Tasks
The importance of turning learning experiences into positive situations has already been discussed. You don’t have to focus solely on big days out, though. Even daily tasks around the home can be a great opportunity to inject learning into the equation. At this age, kids are excited to help out around the home. So, use it to your advantage.
For starters, cooking at home is an ideal way to support the pursuit of better nutrition. It can additionally be an opportunity to practise counting, reading, and recalling shapes or colours. The memories will undoubtedly stay with both of you forever. Crucially, it is a relaxed environment for parents to support learning without it feeling like a lesson.
Tidying up is another opportunity to learn through games, such as collecting all the toys of a certain colour.
Try Problem Solving
As already mentioned, developing learning strategies is particularly important for youngsters. Problem solving and logic are two priceless skills. Moreover, it’s often the best way to encourage academic development without sitting at a homework book. Not least because there are plenty of fun ways to do this.
Puzzles and brain teasing games are ideal. Meanwhile, even computer games can turn problem solving into something fun. Guiding a character through a level, for example, may require your child to think carefully about how to tackle the problem. Of course, it is a good way to improve hand-eye coordination too.
Problem solving is something where you might have to give your child hints. However, leaving some room for them to discover answers for themselves will be vital.
Use All Available Resources
The thought of taking on the role of teacher can be quite daunting. After all, you’re a parent with no prior experience of teaching kids. Thankfully, you do not have to take on the challenge alone. Resources are available in multiple places, starting with exercise books aimed specifically at 4-5 year olds. These teach handwriting, numbers, and more.
Alternatively, you can find lots of free resources online. Platforms like Explore Learning are great for homeschooling as well as traditional schooling. With the structured tactics gained by using the guided resources, it should be easier for you. In turn, it’s likely to help your child get more out of their home-based learning.
When combined with the fact that you know your child better than anyone, you should find the right tactics. Once you do, it’ll support them throughout reception and beyond.
The Final Word
Academic learning isn’t the only key ingredient of a child’s personal growth. Still, education is important and now is the time to set your child up for life. Early success will give them the confidence to embrace learning. With the right mindset, there is nothing to stop them reaching their full potential.
As a parent, that’s all you could ever ask for.