Do you want to help your young child who’s in primary school, but you don’t know what to do?

Remember, you as parent or care-giver are your child’s first teacher – think of all they have learnt already! And you can help your child with improving their academic ability as well. Here are some ways to help your child:

Ask them what they learnt at school, and what they found interesting.
Children don’t get much time to talk themselves about what they are learning, but discussing is one of the best ways of learning.

Chat to your child about things you think they may find interesting.
The most successful children in the long run are curious and interested in the world. For example, tell children stories about when you were little, how different things were – and what was similar. Answer their questions carefully so they keep their interest and curiosity in the world, as children who are curious are the ones who are most likely to do well in their careers.

Read to your child or tell them stories in your home language
Children who are read to – or who hear lots of stories – do better in school. So join your local library, or find children’s stories on your cellphone – every week there is a new children’s story on FunDza too! The most important thing is that children enjoy the story, and that you enjoy your time reading it together. Ask them what they think is going to happen in the story, and what they like or don’t like about the story.
If you don’t feel confident reading stories, think about stories you knew as a child – and tell them to your children. Or even make some up!

Let children get dirty, and explore things
The world is a dangerous place, and you are responsible for your child’s safety. But it is good for your child to play, and to feel independent. Do they want to try to walk on the fence railing? That is good for their balance, so slow down and let them try (obviously not a good idea if it is so high that they would fall and break a leg!). Do they want to play in the sand? That kind of play will help them become engineers one day! Too much focus on staying clean – and so not doing anything – can actually have a negative impact on your child’s development

Children can be hard work! But in the long run, the more you talk and listen with them, the better it is for them in their school and personal lives.

Tell us: Do you find this information useful? What do you enjoy doing with your children?