Learning during the pandemic has created a new form of education for families across the country.
Be sure to check out these sites for more details.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/parent-checklist.html
https://www.ed.gov/coronavirus/
Learning Begins in the Home
How much time is spent on learning activities in the home, in a child’s first five years? Studies indicate an essential need for parents to play an active part in the way their children learn, even before their children attend formal school (Barnyak, 2011). Children learn at a higher pace and elevated level when they have the encouragement and guidance of their parents within their homes and communities, where parents join in the day-to-day learning activities. This involvement is valuable at every level of a child’s development but is an especially vital part of a young child’s growth (Durand & Perez, 2013). During the first five years of life, the brain develops at an incredibly rapid rate.
Parents and families play a huge role in the success of that growth. A foundation for learning begins as soon as a child is born. Parents sing and talk to their children, show books and pictures, play music, create opportunities for movement and more! Each of these moments allow the children to strengthen their brains, as well as their motor skills. That growth leads to scribbling and forming lines, shapes, letters and numbers. It also leads to building short phrases, then sentences through conversations, and eventually on paper. These learning opportunities take place around the dinner table, in the grocery store, at the park, and so many other areas of home life! Emily Buchwald said, “Children are made readers on the laps of their parents.” This amazingly true comment can be spread to all parts of learning, as growth and development really does begin in the home. Children are made learners in the homes with their families.
Keeping a “STEAM”y Home
With a growing percentage of the workforce leaning on skills related to the “STEM” fields, schools are driving students into these areas. STEM stands for ‘science, technology, engineering, and math’. Recently, this acronym has gained a letter. Many educators now see strong value of “STEAM”, which incorporates ‘arts’ into the learning experiences. This addition recognizes the importance of creativity in the learning process. Studies show that creativity is a necessity for the brain to learn and retain knowledge; integrating music, dance, theatre, and visual arts into learning on a regular basis will enhance each step of brain development (Brown, 2013; Lynch, 2014; Sousa, 2017).
These concepts for learning should be carried into the homes with young learners as well. In addition to guiding children into literacy and numeracy skills, it is highly beneficial to incorporate science, technology, and art skills into daily experiences. These opportunities do not require additional funds in the family budget or lofty backgrounds in the given fields. They simply require an investment of family time. By cooking meals together, taking a walk through nature, or creating a scrapbook together, families can build special memories while building valuable skills that provide a foundation for learning. So many of these opportunities allow young children to use multiple senses. The scents, tastes, touch, and sounds that children experience help them comprehend new knowledge (Stylianides & Stylianides, 2011).
Have an amazingly “STEAM”y summer with your family! Spend time together building skills in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, & Math.
Read with your Children from Day One
It is critical for children of all ages, even from birth, to spend time reading books with their parents. Reading books with infants and young children opens a child’s world to a larger vocabulary. Moments shared in reading also gives children knowledge about letters and words. Research notes that reading together builds oral literacy skills and even pre-writing skills (McWayne et al., 2012; Welsh et al., 2010; Carver et al., 2013). These are skills that are often of little concern until formal schooling, yet they are necessary long before. The foundation for learning, and for gaining a strong literacy base, are supported immensely with this two-fold concept. First, families should read to and with young children. Secondly, reading connections should occur on a daily basis (Sukhram & Hsu, 2012).
Basic cognitive skills help children as they enter the formal education system and a lifetime of learning. Parents can introduce these concepts to their children through direct teaching about letters, words, and books. This occurs when parents read books to their children and keep books in the home for the children to explore independently (Barnyak, 2011; Farver et al., 2013). Indirectly, children learn literacy skills when their parents engage them in conversations that are filled with descriptive words and a sizeable vocabulary (Sukhram & Hsu, 2012).
“There is more treasure in books, than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island.”
-Walt Disney
Here are a few terrific reminders that offer support for the need of reading to children at a young age:
Be sure to peek through all 9 pages of this one!
http://www.parents.com/baby/development/intellectual/benefits-of-reading-to-your-newborn/
Take advantage of a handful of ideas in this article!