Children aged 7 to 11
Your children will be used to learning in a variety of fun and interesting ways and will engage more readily with a balance of active learning, physical activity and quiet time for reflection such as reading or independent working. Talking about their learning is a great way for them to show what they have learnt. Make sure they know they are doing a good job, find ways to encourage and praise them for their efforts.
Here are some things you can encourage your children to do.
- Read – encourage your children to read regularly, whether this is to find things out, or for pleasure. Books are a valuable learning tool. They can fire imagination, improve vocabulary and feed an appetite to ‘find out’. Sharing books with them and asking about the story they have read or what they have found out from information books will show that you value it too.
- Have fun – spending time as a family playing games can help develop many skills, such as turn taking, concentrating, listening to one another and using numbers and counting. Household challenges like planning a talent contest, singing and dancing routines, or playing guessing games can be a way to involve the whole family.
- Play together and alone – it is important to allow time for your children to play independently to develop their imagination and creativity. Depending upon their age and interests, encourage make believe games, like playing shop, or school, or going to a café or exploring in the garden. Children of this age still find great pleasure in playing with a range of toys and games – they can provide much needed distraction and security.
- Be creative – making things or performing requires thought, communication and cooperation. Creative activities can take place, inside or outside if you have the space, and can include cooking, gardening, painting, drawing, music and dance. You could use your recycling materials (such as cardboard and plastic) for making things that interest them. Many of these activities will also involve using number skills, such as measuring and counting.
- Explore interests – children develop many skills while learning more about some of their favourite things. Researching topics of personal interest will motivate and engage your children to find out more. They will enjoy the satisfaction of showing what they have learnt.
- Use technology – computers and tablets can be very useful tools for learning, but not everything has to be written down or typed out. Children can show what they have learnt by making videos, sound recordings or images. Be sure to support them to make good decisions about their screen time.
You should contact your children’s school if you have questions about how to support your children’s learning. If you require any further help or ideas try the following information:
S4C have brought together Welsh language resources for children, and links to educational games, stories, etc.
International Play Association, provides help and activities to support play, in many different ways.