The lockdown and changes to the educational system as a result of the coronavirus outbreak has certainly created challenges for Australian parents and teachers. The need to keep kids at home for their safety and wellbeing has meant parents have needed to step up and oversee their children’s educational experience.

Without a teaching background and experience, many parents have concerns regarding delivering the education support their child needs from home.

We know it can be challenging and overwhelming, so we’ve pulled together our top six tips for parents on teaching at home to support you through the process.

At school, every child has their own desk or dedicated space to learn from. A great first step is to create a learning space for your child which makes their education easier each day. Set a computer up at a desk in a living space or set up a learning space on the dining room table. The important thing is that your child has easy access to the tools and resources they need, such as technology, workbooks and stationery.

Try to avoid setting up your learning area in a room with a TV (unless you’re streaming online classes through it) as this will present a distraction for your child.

Setting up a learning environment is ideal for getting your child in the right head space to improve their concentration and education.

Ensuring your child has the correct resources for their learning level is vital. It’s also a good way of keeping stability between the learning environment they had at school and what you have on offer at home.

Do your kids have the right electronic devices, workbooks, calculators, pencil sharpener or mathematical tools to get their work done?

We suggest making sure you have:

• Appropriate stationery: As we mentioned above, you need to make sure you have the everyday resources students in classrooms are used to having, including basic stationery. If something is missing, browse through our extensive line of stationery products for a solution. Browse our range here.
• Storage: If you are short on space at home or have competing needs for the desk/study for your work from home or you child’s schooling, you might find setting up an educational space in a common area of the home becomes the only solution. Whilst using the dining table works, make sure you do have a system for storing all educational tools at the end of the day. This will help you keep your child’s work organised as well as give them a sense of school finishing at the end of the day. Simple things like document trays and magazine boxes are affordable and make storage simple. You can find some on our website here.
• Something to write on: Kids learn in many ways, one of which is visually seeing solutions and answers come to life through written word on a whiteboard or smart board. Having a simple board to write spelling words or equations on can help you support your children if a particularly challenging learning task arises. We have the perfect sized whiteboard for teaching at home available here.

Children and adults respond well to structure - especially a morning routine. Get to breakfast at the same time every day, maybe even get out of your PJs ready to start the day!

One of the best things you can do to make learning at home easy is to plan ahead. Having a lesson plan for the day will help reduce your stress and provide expectations around your child’s learning.

It’s also a good idea to tell your children what the lesson plan is for the day. Most kids don’t like being left out of the loop. By telling them what you have prepared, they can feel organised and at ease with a routine which is structured for them – similar to what they experience daily at school with regular break times.

Sticking to a routine is an easy way to keep your child on track for when school returns. The key is to find a level of routine that suits you - regular reading time allows for the continuation of structure outside of the school environment.

Now more than ever we are relying on technology for education.  Whilst Kookaburra provides an exceptional range of tech support items like webcams and iPad accessories, we strongly believe that print literature plays a vital role in continuing our children’s education in both the school and home environments.

Our wonderful publishers such as FireFly and Oxford are offering continued support throughout this challenging time by providing FREE digital availability to teachers and students.  In collaboration with the support print materials available on our website, you can provide your children with engaging, educational and curriculum aligned learning at home.

Remember, let’s focus on physical isolation – not social isolation!  Now more than ever, we are relying on our social networks and contacts. If you can co-ordinate time with peers via digital messaging systems, the children can regain some of the social elements of communication and have some virtual playtime whilst collaborating and supporting their classmates in each other’s learning.

Together, we can support the active engagement with screens and avoid the passive engagement - whilst encouraging educational achievement.

Teaching at home is a unique experience for parents and students, and whilst you want to keep their education progressing to ensure their development, your at-home schooling doesn’t need to identically match the at-school environment.

Being at home means your kids have access to one-on-one support from you, and you’re in the fortunate position to know how they learn best. So why not make learning at home fun by incorporating some of their favourite activities into your plan.

These might include:

• A cooking lesson: Teach your kids a new recipe and help take them through the cooking process! This can be an excellent geography lesson if you choose to cook a dish from another country, a science lesson based on processes and ingredient combinations, or a hands-on maths lesson around measurements.
• Art class outside: Grab some chalk and head outside and tell your kids to draw away! This helps get your kids out of the house and into the sunshine. Chalk is a cheap, mess-free way for them to be creative and will simply wash away as soon as the rain comes. No clean-up necessary! Kookaburra offers a range of chalk products you can use to encourage your kids to create art outdoors.
• Stay physical by using online resources: YouTube is a great teaching resource and can be a convenient way to find physical activities for your kids. When you’re teaching at home, consider searching yoga poses as a calming, meditative lesson or use dance routine instructional videos to keep your kids active. Alternatively, if your family has access to a Nintendo Switch or Wii, see if there are some games that involve problem solving whilst keeping your kids physically active. This will brighten up their day and make sure they’re getting plenty of exercise.

Although teaching your kids from home can feel isolating at times, remember you aren’t alone. COVID-19 has changed the lives of millions of people and led many parents to take up an educational role in the household. As is often said, we’re all in this together! Don’t be afraid to contact your child’s teacher to ask for advice on lessons or how to teach a specific topic. Or consider reaching out to a fellow parent who might be able to share insight or encouragement when needed.

There are also many online resources and government supported information available to parents during this time. For example, the NSW government has created a document designed to help you understand your responsibilities when it comes to teaching at home. You can find the document and further information here.

While a lot of the world is on hold at the moment, our team isn’t! We’re continuing to provide educational resources to parents teaching at home across Australia. If you’re in need of supplies to help you teach at home, head to our website here.