Schools have started to open, and many kids have felt a big change. This is all because of distance learning. These learners indeed felt different the moment they set foot in their schools. Nearly 93 percent of American households with school-age children were involved in some form of distance learning. This was during the COVID-19 outbreak, according to the US Census Bureau. These children have certainly felt the need to re-adapt to face-to-face learning.
If you’re a parent, you’ll also feel the urge to help your children with these adjustments. Learning online is very different from in-person studying. Kids enrolled in schools that didn’t offer hybrid or remote instructions might need to adjust fast. But if your kids mostly did remote learning, you can help them with their needs.
There are states with schools that still offer virtual instruction. If you enrolled your kids in this setup, you can help them adjust before their schools start removing distance learning. Here are some tips you can apply to ensure that your kids are ready once schools start to open again fully:
Get Them Prepared
The first thing you have to do is make your children ready for in-person learning. Do this by practicing routines that they used to do before they started virtual learning. If you haven’t kept a routine of preparing their breakfast to checking their school activities, you should relearn this. A drastic change might surprise them and may not make them comfortable. Keep everything at a slow pace until the build-up. Make the transition from virtual instructions to physical learning as smooth as possible.
Condition Their Learning Habits
One way to prepare them for the adjustment is by making them aware of their imminent return to school. You can make your children start a studying habit that most students had before the lockdown. Get them to read books they love the most and create activities based on what they read.
Mimicking a classroom setup helps them condition their minds. You can also give them warm-up sessions by enrolling them in extra-curricular or non-academic classes. Sign them up for art classes or music lessons. Give them something that can make their minds and body prepared for the change.
Time Management
Distance learning may have had affected your kids’ sense of time. This may also affect their punctuality and learning schedules. That’s why you need to guide them on fixing their routines and schedules.
Allot sufficient time for their study hours. Start lessening TV and gaming time if possible. Aside from studying habits, get their body clocks set for schooling too. Set schedules for their bedtime and waking up. Enough sleep can induce their drive for learning.
Time is a vital element when it comes to learning. If your kids can manage their time correctly, they’d be able to absorb knowledge effectively.
Promoting Friendships
The setup during virtual instructions may have somehow deprived your kids of mingling with other children. This is why you should start getting your kids involved in activities with other kids in their school. Let them build connections by inviting some kids over to your house—most preferably, the one your kids are classmates with. This way, they can already establish connections with their classmates even before class.
Help them create meaningful interactions with the other kids in the school by doing this. They might even find a new friend from these children or have a new study buddy. Learning isn’t all about books and academics. You should always involve fun for the children. This can inspire them to go to school. Do this by promoting the notion of making friends with other kids.
Positive Reinforcement
An effective way to get your kids encouraged to study is by rallying behind them. You need to celebrate any academic or non-academic milestone. This way, they’ll be more inspired to give their all. You can give them rewards for doing good in their lessons.
Make them find useful trivia to tell you. If they’re successful in giving you some, give them something in return. Acknowledge every effort they exert when it comes to learning. This will drive them to achieve more. They can bring this mindset inside the classroom. Encourage your kids through positive reinforcement. They’ll surely learn how to strive more in studying.
It can be challenging for kids to condition themselves to go back to school. But don’t pressure them on getting themselves ready. It can be a tedious process for some students, given that they came from an unprecedented learning setup. Give it time and trust the process. Learn with them and boost their passion for learning.