General Activity Tips

Read Every Day

Read with your child each day for 20 minutes. Preschool children who are exposed to language by hearing words that are read to him or her and in conversation tend to do well in school. In addition, studies show that students who love learning and do well in school were exposed to reading at an early age; beginning at birth, in the home.

Establish Routines

Provide a consistent, predictable and structured routine for your child. Keeping a consistent routine will ensure your child has a smooth transition back to school after periods of extended breaks.

Spend Time Playing

Research tells us that young children learn best through play. When children are provided uninterrupted time to play and pretend they develop important problem solving and critical thinking skills that will be important for school success. Play also allows students the opportunity to practice turn taking, build language, increase vocabulary and make sense of the world around them. Be sure to engage in play with your child

Everyday Activity Ideas:

• Go on a nature walk. More info available here.

• Letter/Number Recognition Activities-hide letters around the house, go on a letter hunt, create letters out of simple household items

• Phonemic Awareness Games-sing songs and nursery rhymes, read books, find objects that rhyme around the house, rhyming matching games

• Math-count everything, notice numbers around the house, look for patterns in the environment, go on a shape hunt, practice sorting when doing laundry or everyday chores around the house by size, color, shape, and attribute, spend time cooking

It is important to remember that learning can take place in any environment. The key is to ensure you are taking time to observe and talk about the world around you. Children should spend time engaged in activities that allow them to grow in the areas of reading, writing, phonemic awareness, math, literacy, science and social emotional learning. Learning at home can be fit into your regular routine at home. The goal is to focus on simple life skills, routines and basic academics.