Dear Parent/Carer, We know these times have certainly not been planned for and for some, these extra weeks off with the children will be quite a challenge and may seem overwhelming and inconvenient but we all have a part to play to ensure this virus doesn’t claim too many lives as well as ensuring that our children continue to learn.
We have included some of our home learning pack on our blog but don’t rush to get through it as there are more important things to think about during this time.
Please remember, you do not have to recreate a school in your home, let the children learn in an environment that is best for them. That may be sat on the sofa, on a bean bag, lying on their tummies on the floor, snuggled under a blanket (particularly lovely for reading), outside if the weather is nice etc. If they want to sit at a table, then of course, this is fine too!
Here are some really basic things you could do during this time:
READ: Try to at least read every day. Read to your children and read with your children and listen to them read. Read comics, picture books, newspapers, recipes, books that you enjoyed as a child and even listen to audiobooks!
PLAY: Play board games, card games, play hide and seek, play ball games in the garden (even if it’s just bouncing a tennis sized ball off a wall). Play on the wii if you have one, play with lego, playdoh and any other toys that are sat gathering dust. Teach your child how to do a word search or a cross word.
ENJOY: Enjoy the chance to slow down the pace instead of rushing the kids to school, clubs, parties etc. Go to bed a little later and enjoy looking at the stars together. Get up a little later and enjoy a fuller breakfast as a family. Enjoy planting things in the garden together and take the time to nurture any plants that are already there. Enjoy digging in the garden to see what creatures you can find and what types of flowers you can see.
DRAW, COLOUR and MAKE: You can spend some time drawing the bugs that you find together and the plants that you see and then colour them the colours that they are or create new species by changing their colours about. Make paper chains, snowflakes, chatterboxes and any other craft that they like the look of. You could build dens and obstacle courses and set up a ‘shop’ in your home. Use wool to make friendship bands or learn to make a pom pom.
COOK: Get your child involved in helping to make breakfast, lunch and dinner. Even if it’s as simple as buttering their own bread and helping to peel and chop any veggies! Make homemade soups using the vegetables they have helped to chop. Bake bread, cakes, biscuits. Let the children help with the weighing out and measuring of any ingredients.
TALK: When all of this is done; talk about it all, write a diary together about what you have done each day. Think of this time as a chance to let your children catch up on all of the things that the busy school day do not allow time for. This is the learning that takes place outside of classrooms and outside of a jam packed curriculum.
Stay safe in these strange times… You’ve got this!
Year 1 Team