INSIGHT Magazine Special Home Edition April 2020 | Page 63

programs and services free during the COVID-19 period. your child's school has provided learning materials. 3. Create a structure Make sure your children see this as normal school, from home. It’s important to create a structure. Mainstream schools have a timetabled structure throughout the week, so rather than disrupting your child’s routine, you might want to follow a similar daily schedule as your child’s school routine. The advice is to aim for the time frames provided by the schools, and then be flexible depending on how your child is progressing. 5. Be around to help, but don’t get in 4. Get to know what your child should know Now that your child’s school has moved to online learning, as a supervising adult you will be more a teacher’s aide or facilitator rather than a replacement teacher. It’s likely INSIGHT the way If your child is finding a particular task difficult, be available to make suggestions and answer questions, but try to let them do things themselves as much as possible. If you don’t know the answer, work with your child to discover a solution. Let your child, where possible, self regulate – that is to take control of their own learning and not rely on you. If all else fails… There are many online support activities for children learning from home. Where possible try to only use those from official education authorities. ✽ April 2020 – Special Home Edition 64