Remote / Home Learning:

Advice for Parents & Carers

 

What you can do to help.

Home learning is challenging for parents and carers, and we know that it cannot replace school – home learning is not school! But by working together we can achieve the best possible outcomes for children during this difficult time. We kindly ask for your support, so that we can continue to provide high-quality education for your child during lockdown or isolation.

Younger children in particular need support in accessing online learning. At the same time, we don’t expect you to try and ‘teach’ your child structured lessons all day, and we don’t expect parents to have the resources at home that we have in school. But playing an active role in your child’s learning the best you can will make a huge difference – and home, learning will look different for every family.

 

OUR TOP TIPS:

  • Try to encourage your child to be ready and dressed for the start of the day, and to keep to a familiar plan each day by creating and sticking to a routine that works for you and your child
  • Distinguish between weekdays and weekends and be realistic in your expectations – children need short bursts of activity rather than longer sessions and playtime, just like at school
  • Plan breaks for exercise into the day to help keep your child active as much as you can
  • Be kind to yourself and if something isn’t working, come back to it later or try it again the next day – you are doing your best!
  • Help us motivate your child by sending us updates and completed work for staff to comment on and let us know if you’re having any difficulties with remote learning, or if you have any questions. You can contact your class teacher directly on Tapestry or email and they will be able to offer support. We will also have regular Zoom sessions to keep in touch.

 

      Here are some key things to remember, to support you in learning at home:

 

KEEP IN TOUCH!

It is vital that you stay in touch with your child’s teacher via Tapestry, to upload children’s work to let them know how they are getting along. 

Remember that we are here to help you – let us know if you have ANY problems or if you need any extra support with home learning. Please don’t struggle in silence – we are only too happy to help. 

You can also visit our website – which offers more guidance, advice and support on our class pages, including links to our most commonly used websites and advice on supporting children with SEND.

 

READ, READ, AND READ SOME MORE!

Reading is perhaps THE most important thing you can do to help your child’s learning and development.  We are signposting parents to free online e-books through ‘Oxford Owl’ – these books are aligned to the books children read in school, as they follow the same reading colour bands and there are literally hundreds of free e-books to choose from!  You will need to create an account and login for Oxford Owl - but this is free and easy to do.  Please ask your child’s teacher if you have any difficulty with this.

Reading any kind of book or comic / magazine together will help – read together and talk about what you read, to make sure your child is understanding and engaging with the story or the text, or even just the pictures for younger children.

KEEPING A ROUTINE

Children will feel more comfortable with a predictable routine, so try to make sure they:

  • get up and go to bed at the same time each day  
  • have regular meal times  
  • turn off any electronic devices, including the television, at least an hour before bedtime  
  • keep active -young children should be active for around three hours a day in total.

GET SOME FRESH AIR EVERY DAY

If you do not have a garden, you can take children outside to exercise.

While inside, there are plenty of things you can do to keep children active, such as:

  • playing hide-and-seek,
  • seeing who can do the most star jumps
  • making an obstacle course
  • playing music and having a dance-off

    TELEVISION AND DIGITAL DEVICES

There are lots of ways to help your child to learn, such as reading together and make-believe play.

However, you can also use what they have watched on television or the internet to help their learning. Talk with them about what they are watching or use their favourite television characters in other games and activities. Use sites that you can trust, like CBeebies and CBBC.

Set age-appropriate parental controls on any devices young children are using and supervise their use of websites and apps.

Try sharing things your child makes with your friends and family online and encourage others to do the same. Your child might enjoy seeing things they have made on the screen or seeing what other children have done.

EARLY YEARS AND INFANT CHILDREN

It can be really hard to put home learning in place for our youngest children who don’t ‘sit at a table’ to work for longer periods of time, like older children.  But there are lots of things parents can do that make a huge difference.

You can help your child to learn through the little things you do with them, for example:

  • everyday conversations
  • make-believe play
  • games with numbers or letters
  • reading together
  • involving them in the things you are doing, such as household chores, and talking with them about it

These activities can be built into everyday life and play.

 

Please remember that we are here to help and support you and your child – don’t hesitate to contact us for help and support.