Enhancing Home Learning

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<a href=”https://www.onlineschoolsreport.com/enhancing-home-learning/”><img src=”https://www.onlineschoolsreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/enhancing-home-learning.jpg” alt=”Enhancing Home Learning” width=”500″ border=”0″ /></a><br />Source: <a href=”https://www.onlineschoolsreport.com/”>Online Schools Report</a><br />

Worldwide, at least 90% of students are stuck at home due to COVID-19*

*as of 4/24/2020

The Struggle Is Real: Adapting To Remote School

Nearly 9 in 10 parents are concerned their child could fall behind academically*
- More than 8 in 10 are struggling to keep their children engaged*
Parents aren’t alone
- 76% of students and 66% of teachers are in lower spirits than before the pandemic
- Teachers are concerned their students will fall behind in key subjects
  - Math: 90%
  - English: 88%
  - Science: 81%

After a sudden transition to remote schooling, growing pains are inevitable — But, when educators and parents work together, students can still learn and thrive

Tips For Helping With Remote Learning

Turn Off Tech Distractions

A 2015 study found that cell phone notifications interfered with attention and productivity — even when participants didn’t interact with their device

- Your child likely needs access to tech to participate in online learning, but you can limit the impact of distractions
  - Stop notifications
    - Turn on “do not disturb” mode during class sessions
    - Silence notifications — vibrations can be as distracting as sounds
  - Limit distractions
    - For Apple Devices — use “screen time” to set time limits on specific apps and features
    - For Android Devices — use “focus mode” to block access to specific apps on a set schedule
Find A New Normal
- It’s easy to let normal schedules slip when everyone is home — You don’t have to keep your old schedule to have a consistent routine
  - Build a schedule around a type of activity, rather than specific plans
    - Alternate between independent and shared activities, quiet and active play can help avoid behavior problems and improve focus
  - Encourage sleep to reduce stress — for both you and your child
    - Keep to a bedtime and wake time, even if they’re different from when kids were going to school
  - Master transitions to keep your child engaged when switching tasks
    - Give warnings before a transition — and stick to them
    - Get your child’s attention, give directions, then say “go”

Try a visual timer, such as the Time Timer app, to help your child understand how much time is left before switching tasks

Share & Collaborate
- Keep in touch with other parents to share ideas on what works
- Schedule virtual playdates for your child to catch up with friends
- Let students collaborate and help each other with schoolwork through digital

Revive Letter Writing — Writing letters to friends and family is great way to help kids stay connected while practicing valuable fine motor skills

When learning is fun, it’s easy to get kids engaged — Try these tips for hands-on learning while schools are meeting digitally

Hands On Learning At Home

Reading
- Though many public libraries are closed, free books and audiobooks are still available — Many libraries will allow you to get a card online if you don’t already have one
  - Digital Library Loans: Get free materials using your library card
    - Libby offers ebooks and audiobooks
    - Hoopla offers books, movies, music, and more
    - Sora offers free books for students?

Want more books? Some library systems will grant cards without local residency, or let you purchase a card for a small annual fee — adding more cards to your account will let you check out more items

- - Public Domain Books: Find free texts that are no longer copyrighted
    - Google Books allows you to search for free editions
    - Project Gutenberg includes over 60,000 free books
    - Librivox offers audiobooks recorded by volunteers
  - Share Your Books: There are still safe ways to share books with friends
    - Kindle & Nook allow ebook owners to loan a book for 14 days
    - Little Free Library says it’s still safe to use the boxes so long as your neighborhood isn’t a hotspot for the virus
    - Bookshop.org is an online retailer that sends the profits from your purchase to local, independent bookstores

How To Sanitize Books: Wipe the cover using a disinfectant wipe or isolate new books 24 hours to allow any contaminations to die off

Science
- Explore Nature In Your Backyard: Get involved in a citizen science project that sparks your child’s interest and helps scientists study nature on a larger scale
  - Identify plants and animals in your own backyard using these simple apps
    - iNaturalist offers suggestions and shares images of plants and animals for community identification
    - LeafSnap identifies trees using pictures of their leaves and catalogs identification for use by researchers
    - NASA GLOBE Observer tracks observations of clouds, land cover, and tree measurements
    - Google Sky lets you explore the solar system without a telescope
  - Find more citizen science projects and search by your student’s age at SciStarter.org
- Embrace Experiments: Science projects help children practice skills problem solving and perseverance — in addition to learning new concepts
  - Try a science-themed subscription box for new experiences every month
    - Spangler Science Club promises 5 science projects a month that your child can explore independently — no help needed
    - Creation Crate provides materials and electronics to build projects, expanding on prior knowledge each month
    - MelScience designs 2-3 chemistry experiments around a single theme and adds virtual reality content for more depth
  - Find easy experiments to try with things you already have around the house at ScienceFun.org
Math
- Practice talking about math and problem solving — These apps make it easy, even if you’re not comfortable with math yourself
  - Bedtime Math: Offers a daily math problem for children ages 3-9, including a short engaging story, and a problem based on your child’s age

A 2018 study showed when parents with high math-anxiety used the app, children showed long term improvement

- - Family Games: Board games like Monopoly and Yahtzee, or card games like War help practice basic math skills

For an added challenge use extra cards or dice to practice arithmetic while you play

Play dice games for a fun challenge adaptable to your child’s skill level – Start with a set of Math Dice or search sites like TeachersPayTeachers to get ideas:

ThinkFun.com/products/math-dice

TeachersPayTeachers.com

HOME LEARNING WORKS WHEN IT’S FUN