Online learning became part of the new normal! As schools are facing the challenge of providing learning opportunities for all students online, parents are called on to be further involved than ever before, particularly for their younger ones.
Maintaining high levels of engagement can be challenging even for adult learners. When it comes to toddlers engagement becomes a questionnaire factor.
It's been more than a couple of months since online learning became a part of a kid's day-to-day life. Still, most parents might be wondering how to engage your child actively in online learning.
Well, the term engagement refers to the amount and quality of time kids spend on online learning activities. When it comes to online learning it consists of two paces.
1) Real-time learning experience where students have some type of scheduled online interaction with a tutor.
2) Non real-time learning experience where students interact with online resources at their own pace.
In both the mode of delivery, kids are asked to be engaged all the time. Without effective support for kids from teachers and parents, distance learning can easily become disengaged and frustrated.
Here are some of the best tips to help your child maintain focus and stay engaged during the time of online learning.
Understanding the Expectation
When it comes to online learning, especially for kids, parents must try to understand the expectation level. Parents should realize how much time their kid should spend online for learning purposes.
There is screen time consideration for all the kids. Even studies suggest that an excessive amount of screen time will lead to some major eye problems in the future.
Generally, older students can handle a longer amount of screen time when compared to the younger ones. So, you should consider what is reasonable and then involve your child in online learning activities.
For younger children, mostly interaction and play is valuable for learning!
Make Learning Fun
If there is one thing this global crisis has proven, it’s that now is the time to think outside the box and get imaginative. Similarly, children's education must be approached creatively, especially with children who are coping or losing interest.
Parents must find alternate ways to make their child's learning more fun and interactive. Try to engage your kid in fun and creative learning activities apart from academics.
If kids' found fun in learning then eventually they will fall in love with learning.
Motivate Regularly
Each time your child completes online learning instruction, provide immediate and positive feedback!
Something as simple as putting a star, or sticker on the work assignment can go a long way in helping to motivate your child.
Most importantly don’t forget to celebrate yourself, as you are playing such a tremendous role to help your child learn and grow.
Motivating your child regularly by providing positive feedback will make their distance learning lovable.
Give Your Child Choice
Apart from academics, your kid might be interested in other learning activities, say, music, drawing, etc. Providing an opportunity for your kids to explore their choice of learning will motivate and engage them a lot.
For instance, if your kid is having 4 sessions of academic classes, allow them to choose a class or course of their home and let them spend an hour daily to learn something new in their interested domain.
This helps to eliminate the frustration and lack of interest in distance learning.
Moreover, adding well-chosen, constrained elements of choice in topic or course are great options to help boost motivation during distance learning.
With creative thinking and effort by tutors and parents, kids will continue to build their knowledge and skills, but also build confidence and a love for learning.
Remember, learning is lovable only if it is filled with interest, fun, and enthusiasm!
