Tips on homeschooling

Published: 03 Apr 2020 Tagged: childrenCoaching for ParentsCoronavirusCOVID-19Educationhigh schoolHomeschoolingOnline lessonsoutbreakparentspre-schoolersprimary schoolersschoolsecondary schoolersSpeakableteacherstipsTutoringZoom

Recent events regarding the COVID-19 pandemics has led government leaders to support children to remain at home. Private schools have implemented their particular online class systems, in order to ensure students will remain studying even at distance. However, many schools still remain open for any parent who need children to spend the day at school while they work, though approximately 50% of students are the entire day at home.

For children who are at home, it is sometimes difficult to retain the same levels of attention and interest when compared to a classroom environment with the presence of a teacher, so parents must assume some responsibilities to ensure their children are effective in a homeschool condition. Speakable has separated some tips to guide you on how to improve your child’s homeschooling days:

• Set up the learning space and time. It doesn’t need to be an entire room, of course, but a special area at home where the child can feel comfortable reading, thinking, writing and producing any school project. That space and specific time slot will remind the child of school routine and feeling with related elements such as books, computer, school materials, study schedule/timetable and so on.
• Provide needed technology. The child will probably need a good network connection, webcam, microphone, headphone/earphone and specific software for the needed activities, such as Skype or Zoom, word editors, presentation design software and others.
• Independent marker. In order to ensure the child will be properly marked in routine school activities, a parent or carer might feel unprepared to check each answer, or even might feel biased and uncomfortable to mark with negative scores and comments. An external person, such as a parents’ friend with spare time, would make it more impartial and fairer.
• Time for interest-based projects. Sometimes, the school structure doesn’t have time and resources to support all different projects that each student might be interested in. At home, there will be spare time to use school knowledge to produce something that gives form to their interests. Writing a storybook, building a robot, learning how to cook, practicing a new language, expanding coding skills, everything is possible under the guidance of parents and online videos.
• Life skills classes in real-life! What better opportunity a child would have to be at home with parents and carers learning about home chores for a future independent life? The child can learn very simple meal recipes, how to do laundry, wash dishes, clean and organise the bedroom and other things that might be boring for them but will make a huge difference in some years.
• Ensure you know what your child is learning and what the child SHOULD be learning. Australian Curriculum offers a general overview of subjects and topics to be taught throughout the year, so it would be fundamental for parents and carers to access this governmental database to ensure their children are not studying too much above or below the expected.
• Be there to support. Supporting your child in such moments is not only related to provide more materials when they get short, solving a technological issue or watch from distance if the child is doing school activities. It also means the emotional support will make your child emotionally strong and confident during these hard times and have parents and carers as forces to remind that the child is not alone, and this is only a temporary condition.

Speakable is still providing its telepractice services and online tutoring, so you can contact us in case you need any advice or extra support, our team is ready for any challenge you might need to solve with your children!