With the school year fast approaching, many schools and universities have decided to utilize online instruction at the beginning of the school year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s common for students, parents, and teachers to struggle with online learning, but hopefully, our helpful online learning tips article can help minimize any obstacles and stress that may arise. To help you out further, we have researched 10 learning tools that can help you and your child’s at-home learning experience be more effective:
- Learning devices: Although many technological devices can be pricey, they are worth the cost if it means it can help your child learn from home. Before COVID-19 technological devices like laptops and ipads were introduced to students to help them be more engaged, organized, and efficient in their learning.
- More books: With technology being the primary resource for at-home schooling, it’s easy to forget how effective reading can be for a child’s learning and development. Having more books at the house will not only improve the learning environment but also help your child with critical thinking, vocabulary, spelling, and many other aspects of your child’s education and development.
- Standing Desks: Learning at home can have many distractions due to the environment in which your child is sitting. It’s important to carve out an at-home learning area for your child, and purchasing or making a standing desk can be just that! Learning and working from a standing desk can help your child’s mental health and improve their focus and their physical health.
- Basic School Supplies: Purchasing basic school supplies like pencils, notebooks, and scissors can complete your child’s learning environment and make your child feel like class is in session! Not only will these supplies help your child learn, but they will also feel like they are back in a classroom.
- Outdoor toys: Almost every child looks forward to recess, and just because you don’t have a playground in your backyard doesn’t mean recess is canceled. Purchasing outdoor toys like a bike, scooter, or even a football can help your child’s learning. Studies show that physical activity for kids is essential for their learning and development as it can improve brain function and help fight childhood obesity.
- Art supplies: Other than lunchtime, many students’ favorite part of school is art class, as it allows them to be creative in many different forms. Purchasing art supplies like paint, crayons, markers, and even chalk can help young students develop many life skills such as motor, language, social, and even decision making skills.
- Dry Erase Board: Many young students like to be creative in the classroom; however, learning from home can make that a bit difficult. Purchasing a dry-erase board can not only improve your at-home learning environment but allow them to be more creative artistically and help them with certain subjects like math or spelling.
- Organization tools: When students are in school a certain order or structure that helps them learn more efficiently. Purchasing items like a timer, plastic bins for each subject, or different colored folders can teach your kids organizational skills that can help them learn and establish a classroom-like setting.
- Headphones: With distance learning, your child must remain focused with limited distractions. Purchasing headphones can allow your child to focus when the teacher is speaking or watching an educational video. Also, studies show that listening to appropriate music when working on assignments can enhance learning.
- Printer/scanner: Because everything is online now, it’s important to remember that your child’s learning doesn’t have to be through a screen entirely. Studies showed that kids who spent two hours or more on screen based activities had lower test scores, resulting in brain defects. So being able to print physical copies of assignments and instructions can help your kids in many different ways.
