Tips for homeschooling

Homeschooling is underway in earnest. And many parents across the country are now beginning to understand the value of teachers!

There’s a huge variation in the approach different schools are taking. Some are expecting kids to stick to their regular curriculum and pinging work to their computer. Others have sent through a few sheets that only keep pupils occupied for a morning.

But certain things are the same. All parents want to support their children as best they can. And all working dads and mums want to help their kids get on with it so they can also get some work done. And most of us are entirely new to homeschooling so need all the tips we can get.

To that end MyTutor, an online tutoring platform has provided a list of three golden rules that parents can follow to help their kids succeed while learning at home.

MyTutor’s Head of Customer Support, Nicola Anderson, explains the top tips for parents suddenly homeschooling:

1. Help them organise their day (and make sure they go outside!)

Without the structure of the school day, and without the engagement of peers, motivation and energy can take a dive. Help your child set up a timetable that’ll work for them and covers the subjects they need. Divide up periods of study with active breaks. Make sure your child moves, goes outside, eats meals at the appropriate times and has offline conversations.

2. Make sure they’ve got a space to work and the equipment they need

Set up a desk in a quiet corner of the house where your child can keep their laptop, textbooks and notes. They’ll find it much easier to focus and the rest of the family can continue life as normal. As schools would normally provide things like flashcards, exercise books and planners, it may be worth preparing these items now should closures be enforced at short notice.

3. Set good habits around phone use

Teens spend a lot of time on apps speaking with their friends anyway. Isolation will only increase their desire to communicate socially. While some communication will be positive for their mental health, the opposite is true when social media fuels feelings of isolation and anxiety. You’ll need to set some ground rules for how phones are used during the day, and keep an eye on your child’s mood.

Inevitably MyTutor reckons on demand, online platforms can fill any gaps in education at this unusual time. They’ve called for public and private sector to work together and minimise the impact on the UK’s students. Dilpreet Bhagrath, Head of Customer Success at MyTutor, said, “Self-learning is a really hard skill, and by introducing online tuition, online tutors can make sure that pupils are staying on track with the syllabus, they can fill in gaps in knowledge, and I think most importantly they can also boost confidence at a really challenging and confusing time.”

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• family life coronavirus