Has any one of us thought of this situation when our kids will be finishing up their school year from home? I am happy that at least they can continue with their academics. Older kids have the option of online learning. They are old enough to understand the process, but what about kids who were about to start their formal schooling? My son is 4-years old. Ideally, in normal circumstances, he was supposed to attend pre-kindergarten. But now I am homeschooling him. Initially, he didn’t realize the holidays, but slowly he started to miss his school. This is obvious for any kid who has been going to school for the last two years. They have a set routine there, plenty of activities, and more than that, teachers who have all her ears and eyes.

With other kids at home, it is hard to plan for something new every day for them. I had also struggled through this period when I was trying to experiment with different routines to give my son his dedicated study time. And also have some activities planned for his day. It is challenging to replicate their school set up at home. But we can try to do whatever we can. We all have our schedule. In my case, I used to work on my podcast, writing assignments, reading, studies (I am pursuing one online certification), and housework when my kids used to be at school. But now, I adjust everything and their studies in my routine.

You can check two of his favorite diy activities on my Instagram page.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CC6Y3ZhJz5X/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

https://www.instagram.com/p/CC86Lv0pcrJ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Let me tell you a few things that have helped me. These five practical tips will make homeschooling a pleasant experience for you.

Waking up early:

Why did I mention this in the very beginning? This habit has always helped me. Starting my day early keeps my routine less stressful. This was I am able to take care of those tasks which demand my undivided attention. Morning hours are my hours. It is not a lot but maybe around 1 hour. Sometimes, I read my course work or finish up reading any pending blog engagement list. When I am sitting with my son, I don’t have a unsent to-do list in my mind.

Preparing the worksheets and reading material in advance:

As I said, my son is four years old, so at this age, teaching through games and activity, worksheets are the best way. Without the school structure, it is hard to decide what to teach him. But with Google, I search for worksheets and create my worksheets. Sometimes, I also take some printouts. Pick the story we are going to read. All this I do a night before to avoid the morning rush. 

Finding the most productive or, say, a happy hour for your child: 

Some kids are morning bloomers and some evening stars. Initially, I used to make my son sit to do his worksheets after I was done with housework. But I realized that that wasn’t working. So, I changed it to the morning. Luckily my son is an early riser. So, I shifted his study time to morning hours before I start preparing for lunch and breakfast. And it worked great. He is also fresh, and I am also in a happy mood :). Here, having the worksheets ready helped me a lot.

Involving them in household work:

I ask my boy to help me unloading the dishwater or mopping the floor or, sometimes, dusting his table and chair, setting up the table for lunch or dinner. Here I am teaching him visual discrimination. This skill is essential to both reading and writing. Additionally, sorting, patterning, and sequencing are all skills that require visual discrimination. These skills are also the foundational building blocks of mathematics as part of your preschool homeschool curriculum. We play memory games. 

Jyppzer App: 

No matters how much we try to use our creativity and out-of-the-box thinking, sometimes, we get stuck. We need some ideas to keep the momentum going. Jyppzer App came handy to me. This app is perfect for kids ages 0-12 years. Jypper is DIPP Certified Educational company with a focus on Early Childhood and Childhood Development. Jyppzer directly empowers parents to contribute to their child’s holistic development using a play-way and experiential learning approach. Their content is developed by child development experts based on neuroscience. It targets parent-child bonding, life skills, growth mindset, STEAM, Human values, and mindfulness. Not just this, you also get a progress report of your child. Their activities are designed using simple household material.

Once you create your kid’s profile, you will get daily activities curated for your child as per his/her age. My favorite among all is Guess the story – “Before I tell you a story, why don’t you tell me what you think the story is?” or “What do you think is happening in the picture?” And another is Mummy Says.

Here is how it works:

– Parents/caregivers to download Jyppzer from app stores (iOS or Android)

– Find age appropriate Activities and Games

– Watch bite-size video demo on our platform and then intern perform

with your child

– Observer how your child is doing each activity

– Give feedback via simple checklist

– Get a real-time progress report on your child’s development

(cognitive, socio-emotional, language, physical, musical &

naturalistic intelligence)

If you have liked this so far and would like to check it out, here are the details. Jyppzer is priced at Rs. 999/- per child PA. But if you use an exclusive Promo Code “ALPANA” then this will get 15% off, i.e., instead of Rs. 999/- you will pay Rs. 849/-

-12 months of access to premium activities & games

-2 Online workshops for 6-12 yeas (via Zoom)

-15+ digital worksheets for 3-12 years (age-appropriate)

-Progress report

So, this was about homeschooling your pre-kindergartner during a pandemic. Next, I am planning to write a post on tips to homeschool without an expensive curriculum.   

Further reading: https://california.epiccharterschools.org/how-many-hours-typical-homeschool-day/

This School Year Is Different. How to keep your child motivated for virtual learning?

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post but all views and opinions are my own.