Teaching your child how to do two-digit addition or about World War II is
important. But those are limited skills and facts. Teaching your child to
love learning offers them a lifetime of discovery, far outside the
classroom.
Here are 18 easy ways to foster a love of learning in the middle of
everyday life.
- Read to them. Reading not only has physical and emotional benefits,
there is concrete evidence that it helps brain development and academic
growth. With so much possibility, reading is the perfect way to help kids
fall in love with learning. - Let them see you read. While reading to your children has many benefits,
letting them see you read shows kids that reading is forever. It’s not just
for babies. It’s not just for school. Read in front of them (and Facebook
doesn’t count). - Be outdoors. Time outside provides opportunities for fine and gross
motor development, risk-taking and exploring, all of which prove beneficial
to learning. There is also a direct correlation between time outside and
reduction of stress, confidence building and exposure to different
stimulation. - Sing, play and listen to music. The brain benefits of music are
numerous. Plus, music has the ability to bring joy, relaxation and express
ideas. - Relax. True learning goes far beyond grades in a classroom. Show them
you believe that. - Embrace what they love. Give kids the opportunity to explore the things
they love. If your child is into trains right now, find books about trains,
build a train, draw a train and watch trains at the train station. Allow
your child to guide their learning through their passions. - Talk about learning. Let them know when you discover something new.
“Wow, I never knew that popcorn could burn so quickly. I wonder why.” Kids
need to see that we are always learning, even in the ordinary. - Ask questions. I know, as a parent, it feels like all we do is answer
questions. So start asking. “How did that bird know I just put birdseed
out?” or “Why are there so many commercials on TV?” Questions are the
foundation of learning. - Give them money. I know it can be painfully slow, but letting them pay
at the store and count change is real-life learning. If you use plastic for
your payments, talk about how that works, too. - Wonder. Encourage them to think freely about things, without
boundaries. Some of the best ideas started with wild wondering! - Play. School keeps kids busy learning good things. But there is
less room for play
in a regular day. Giving kids the opportunity to play with no agenda allows
them to be
better thinkers. - Ask random math questions. Math facts are foundational for good mental
math, but kids don’t always want more schoolwork. Make math facts fun by
asking them when you’re doing something else like driving, hiking, making
dinner. Make it easy, fun and short! - Keep reading picture books. Even as kids get older, picture books can
provide unique opportunities for learning. Increased connection with the
text, vocabulary and a more sensory approach to reading helps the
experience be enjoyable and beneficial. - Go places. Visit the park or a mountain. Spend time at the free art
museum in person or these days online. Experiences make learning part of
life and create schema, a personal framework for learning. - Create. Giving kids the chance to create through art, music, science or
any imaginative play helps them develop better thinking skills that
translate far outside the classroom. - Enlist help. Helping with adult tasks gives kids new skills and shows
them the need to learn tmahroughout life. Cooking, taking pictures, changing
the oil, doing laundry all show kids that there is always something new
they can do. - Fail. Often. Let them see that failure is part of learning. Recognizing
failure as part of the learning process, rather than an end to learning,
shows kids to keep going. Demonstrate that it’s OK, even good, to fail
because it’s all part of the learning. - Did I mention read? It’s one of the simplest things you can do with
endless possibilities. Read to learn, for fun and for life.
