Children's Education
is extremely important, whether you are
a parent who has them in school or are homeschooling
or you are a teacher. Here is a gathering
of tips and ideas for you to refer to time
and again.
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Listen to audiobooks instead of the radio
on long family road trips or during the
commute. It is amazing how many books one
can "read" while driving or taking public
transportation. It is also a good way to
coerce hopelessly uninterested teens get
exposure to the major works of literature--
Jane Austen, Harper Lee, Alexander Dumas
are good for starters. (Jean Kim)
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As a teacher, when Christmas or another
gift time comes up, there is no gift for
the teacher more valuable than books, materials,
toys, magazine subscriptions, etc... FOR
THE CLASS! When my students have given me
gifts that the whole class can use, I have
them write a dedication inside the book
cover, inside the box lid of the game, etc...
so all know who it is from! (Suzie)
_____
For a Kaper Chart used for Girl Scouts I
printed out pictures of the jobs and a title.
I glued or taped those to a cardboard or
other type of board and used a paper clip
to bend into shape and stick through the
back to hang a card on. I laminated the
board (before the paper clip was put through).
I used old business cards to put the girls'
names on the back of it and have two different
envelopes. We pull names out of one envelope
for each job needed. At the end of the meeting
we put them into the "done" envelope and
pull names for the next meeting out of the
other one. Then we start over again when
the names have all been picked. Another
Kaper chart for camping would be to use
a large poster board, write the jobs down
for each day or activity and pull names
and write them or tape the names under the
jobs. (Janelle)
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Parents are a child's first and best teachers.
My advice to all parents is to read to your
children everyday. Read nursery rhymes,
stories, sing songs. All of these will increase
your child's proficiency with language and
give a great start in literacy learning.
(Christine)
_____
When you reread books to your child, pause
every once in a while for your child to
fill in the missing word. When the book
is a rhyming book, leave out the rhyming
word and let your child supply that. (Christine)
_____
Buy books as gifts. That way you tell the
child that these are exciting things to
own. (Christine)
_____
Go to the library routinely. Let your child
pick his or her own books. Then read them
over and over again. (Christine)
_____
Children learn best by "doing" and by discovering
by themselves -"hands on activities". They
learn best with the approval of a caring
adult who talks to them about what they
are doing.
_____
Involve your children in finger plays and
puppet shows. Interactive learning is better
than dull repetitive learning. Any new imaginative
way to get the information across is beneficial.
_____
Children who are encouraged to draw and
write a story (or describe as the parent
writes) at an early age will help them develop
good language skills.
_____
Having children use math by counting everyday
objects, measuring baking goods, etc. gives
an effective basis for math.
_____
Children learn more effectively when the
parents are involved. The need to know their
parents support them in whatever they do
helps them to excel.
_____
Not only reading about a subject, but also
doing something in conjunction with and
about the subject will be more beneficial
as the child will have some hands on experience
to help understand and remember about the
subject.
_____
Teach but listen to the children. Treat
them with respect. Do unto others as you
would have them do unto you.
_____
If a child is interested in a subject, delve
deeper into it for a while. Cover it fully
so it is learned all together, not just
in chunks here and there.
_____
Children love to be talked to about everything
in detail. They become more effective in
communication skills, and seem to read better.
_____
Children follow/learn by example. They absorb
more than you know by watching you everyday.
If you want to teach them good things, you
should be aware of what you do day by day.
_____
Explain directions step by step and make
sure that they are understood before making
the child try and do it themselves. Explore
all different angles of explanation.
_____
Children who have pen pals around the world
will have more interest in world history
as well as good knowledge of locations on
maps.
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Keep children busy if they seem bored. Teach
them things they can do and remind them
of their "list" of things to do/hobbies
when they are bored. Bored children bounce
around because they know not what to do.
They tend to get out of control and it turns
out to be trouble.
_____
Siblings who help siblings learn are more
confident and both siblings benefit. There
seems to be more harmony between siblings
who know how to help one another. This can
also be effective with students helping
other students or children helping people
in need.
_____
Remember to apply the Who, What, Where,
When, How to everything that you can. This
encourages good thinking skills.
_____
Praise the children for the good they do.
Don't overdo it though. Too much criticism
will make the child feel as though they
can do nothing right, so why should they
even try.
_____
Let them study or read with minimal noises/distractions.
Concentration is better with quiet.
_____
Don't label children. It may at first seem
good, but it may backfire. Children should
be able to think that they can BE or DO
anything.
_____
Use an egg timer not just for "time outs",
but for anything that requires a "time's
up". It works wonderfully well with our
three-year-old son for bedtime, bath time,
playing or sharing a toy. He even asks us
to "set the timer" for anything that gives
him a secure sense of "beginning and end".
(Amy C)
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This summer I had trouble convincing my
five year old son to sit still long enough
to get any studying done. After about 15
minutes of GOOD study time he would start
to fidget and squirm. His explanation was
that he just HAD to get "the wiggles out"
before he could concentrate any more. I
finally hit upon a solution that worked.
We sat on the porch to do his phonics studying
and every time he missed a word he had to
run. MY idea was for him to run around the
swing set, but HE decided he wanted to run
around the house instead!! Occasionally
he would miss a word and have to run, but
more often than not he would miss a word
on purpose so he could run to "get the wiggles
out!" It worked like a charm for us! (Dana)
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