All work and no play make Jack a dull boy! Education is important for a child’s foundation but when amalgamated with Pretend Play becomes even more effective for their growth. These are interactive activities introduced to kids from their pre-school age. They are not just fun and games but crucial in child development. Wonders are achieved through education but it is Pretend Play that complements it for children to succeed at work and in the world at large.

Children are engaged in make believe situations that are created through stories and dramatization while demonstrating with props. Although they are an imaginative act, yet children experience and feel it. They are able to think, ask questions, observe, reason and also get transported into a fairyland.

They learn how to face challenges, solve problems, handle scenarios, cooperate, coexist and dream. These activities mentioned below help them to listen to their thoughts, express their ideas and have their opinions.

Home is Heaven

Kids are made to pretend to call the shots at home. The act of being an adult, to be able to take decisions and shoulder responsibilities, doing common household chores with their tiny play sets and random home items, all of it adds to their self-esteem. They get the feel of managing and running their home which is truly empowering.

Nurturing Identities

This activity can spark up a million imaginations. Costumes are so visually exciting. Donning a ‘chef’s coat’ may want them to conquer the world of hospitality, whereas a ‘space suit’ may aspire them to be an astronaut or just simple ‘make up’ accessories and being dolled up in mommy’s garments may inspire them to be the next beauty queen or a fashion icon. How about adding some excitement to this pretend play act by offering your child thought-provoking books from Reading Egg’s Mega Book Pack.

Cute Copy Cats

Kids love to imitate their favorite movie stars and cartoon characters. When they are asked to imitate and clone their parents and teachers in a respectful yet playful manner, it lets them step into their shoes, explore their personas, appreciate what they do for them while bringing out hilarious quirks.

The Brave Battalion

Kids get all charged up and geared with this thrilling game where they learn the meaning of security. Acting like guarding officers, soldiers on the warfront or secret spy agents defending the country, it makes them alert to protect themselves and their own in sudden dangerous situations. It teaches them to be courageous, have an undeterred spirit and be grateful of the sacrifices of the nation’s heroes.

Fit and Fabulous

Sports and the significance of fitness is ingrained into children through active games. Using toys and other objects as prop tools it acquaints them with a particular sport. Running for that matter being the most common sport and exercise is explained to them with an easy line up of toy cars set as racing tracks so they can have competitions with their siblings and friends. While emulating popular sports icons and knowing their journeys, it would drive them to be one someday.

Doctor-Doctor

Most of us dread hospitals, general medical and dental clinics. When this informative yet fun activity is played with children, they begin to understand how medicine works and cures, taking their fears away. Playing the doctor’s character with their cute teddy bear as their patient, injections and tablets may not be enemies to them anymore and they would even aspire to take it up as a profession.

Tricks of the Trade

In this imaginary activity, the concept of business and shopping is brought in for the kids. They are transported into their best loved places like McDonalds, Gelato Store and Disney Land. They get to experience being into dual character modes, one as a shopper and other as a shopkeeper. They learn how to buy and sell whether it’s a burger, an ice-cream or tickets to the amusement ride. The essential bit is counting money, being accountable to their parents and moreover being mindful to keep their wallets safe in their bag packs. Compliment this play session by giving your child a picture book to read from Reading Egg’s Level 1 Activity Book subscription package available across Dubai, Middle East, GCC, and UAE.

There is no other alternative to Pretend Play. Having started early, they’ll naturally start enjoying these games and will implement the learnings in actual sense. So, whenever they are immersed in any activity, parents must not stop them as it will never be unproductive. Allow them time, give them space and you shall see them fly.

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Many bright students, who perform rather well in other subjects, have difficulty coping with Math. They have a good sense of logical understanding and numeracy skills, but still struggle to apply the same when the class teacher presents them with quizzes and tests to assess their Math skills.

A poor test score demotivates the child further and the child develops a sense of fear towards this dreaded subject. Children lose interest and skip completing homework assignments, rather than paying more attention to fractions and decimal points taught in class.

There are many reasons as to why the child may not like Math and not be able to cope with it in school. From being demotivated, to developing Math anxiety, or even not getting enough scope to practice mathematical operations in school & at home, may be some of the reasons. Sometimes, the lag in the subject may be recognized due to a learning disability that the child is undergoing.

Let us understand some of the reasons behind lack of enthusiasm for Math, so that we as educators and parents are better equipped to guide the child and change his perspective towards the subject.

Ineffective Teaching Methods

Teachers may be using obsolete teaching methods which do not interest the child. Teaching formulas by rote learning technique is not ideal and the child may get bored soon. The pace of teaching the steps to a math equation may also be inappropriate sometimes. Going too fast will confuse the child, but going too slow is equally ineffective.

Insufficient Time for Practice

Just by learning Math concepts in School is not sufficient. Children need to constantly practice Math lessons even at home. Unlike Science there is no fixed definition or solution for Math which can be remembered word to word and then reproduce. Math is all about understanding, reasoning and applying concepts to different problems. Without practice the concept might be forgotten. Only when the steps are systematically followed one can arrive at a correct answer. Hence, practice is the key.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Does your child often get a remark in his diary which says ‘not paying attention in class? Well, this may be an alarming call to get your child examined for ADHD. Children suffering from ADHD may not be able to ‘focus’ in class and therefore have a tough time grasping Math concepts. They may skip steps while trying to solve an equation and arrive at an incorrect answer. There could be scribbled marks all over the examination paper. The child may even sometimes not take time to read the Question correctly and hurry out to solve the problem thereby using an incorrect formula. Ensure that the child gets extra help after school and try to keep his spirits high.

Child is identified with Dyscalculla

Dyscalculla is a learning disorder which affects the child’s ability to solve mathematical problems. The child takes time to identify the relationship between numbers and apply correct rules of math. Even performing simple addition and subtraction of single digit numbers mentally becomes difficult. Not having a grasp of the foundation creates stress for the learner when he is presented with more complex calculations in middle school. However, do not get disheartened. Go slow in teaching and support your child with appropriate Math aids to improve the performance.

Few Tips to help the Math Learners develop interest in the subject

Make Math Fun

Make use of colorful objects, interesting shapes and introduce a Math role model character to children so that they are intrigued to learn more. Every week, dedicate one session to play Math games and have a competition amongst classmates. Parents can assign a ‘budget’ to children and encourage them to make a report of their spending. Going for a drive? Ask your teens to calculate distance, speed, and mileage. To captivate learning, Mathletics presents fun videos and unique printables to engage the students through gamified lesson plans. The modern way of learning Math is as simple as – Learn -> Play -> Review.  Get your hands on the Mathletics subscription all over Dubai, UAE, GCC and the Middle East.

Pair them up to participate in Problem-Solving

The emphasis of Math must not be on getting the right answer. More than the answer being important, it is the correct problem-solving techniques that one needs to adopt. Pair the learners and let each have a Math buddy. Assign problems to them and allow them to device strategies to arrive at an answer. You will be amazed at how children use their creativity to arrive at the solution by using different Math techniques keeping the core concept in mind.

Let Students learn at their own Pace

It is unfair to expect all students in the class to learn at similar speed. Some students have greater logical reasoning power and therefore are great at Math. Some may be brilliant in other subjects, but be averse towards problem solving. Understand that each child is gifted with a different skill set and hence expecting everyone to be Math Wizards in not right.

We are in this together! Let us change our perspective towards humble Math and encourage the future-generation to be savvy with problem-solving techniques.

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Have you noticed a problem in the way your child spells a certain word? Is it a pattern that you have come across often but aren’t aware of how to deal with it? Is your child struggling with getting the spelling correct? Are you afraid that your child will not be able to cope up with other students in terms of his or her spelling skills?

Well, if your answer is a ‘yes’ then don’t panic as we are here to share some tips with you that’ll help your child to spell the words correctly. These are some basic tips that you can try out at your home itself.

You don’t need to be a professional in any particular field. Just be consistent and don’t forget to stay patient with your child. Everyone takes their own time in learning. Children are at a stage where they are adapting and trying to learn new skills every day as they are at a stage where their memory starts developing. Here are a few steps that you can follow to sharpen your child’s spelling skills!

Play Spell-O-Right

Make it like a fun game of interaction between you and your child. In this game, you can write some words and ask your child to spell them. If they are able to spell correctly then they get a star & if they spell incorrectly then they’ve to practice more. This will make you understand if your child is able to spell the words properly.

Say It Out Loud

If you notice that your child is not being able to speak a particular word or some words correctly, then you should ask them to repeat after you. You need to say it out loud with proper pronunciation and make them repeat it again and again until they get it right. Kutubee’s read along feature is an excellent option to be introduced to your child. The app is well recognized and used widely in the UAE.

Make Puzzles

You can make it fun by adding some excitement to it! Yes, that’s definitely possible! You can create puzzles with some letters and ask your child to align the letters, make a word and spell it out loud. This will help your child in also understanding the formation of a word and increase their thinking skills.

Find the Error

Purposely write wrong spellings and check if your child is able to notice the error. If not, then ask them to find an error in that particular word this will sharpen their spelling skills & they will also be able to avoid spelling errors easily from next time onwards.

Five Word Rule

Every day ask your child to spell five new words this will not just improve their spellings but also make their vocabulary better by learning new words often. Reward them or make 2 stars on their book, this makes the child feel like they’ve achieved something great and encourages them to do better.

Clear their Doubts

Keep a doubt clearing session with your child. If they have any doubts regarding a particular spelling then they can get it cleared by asking you. If they can’t spell the word correctly at their first attempt itself then don’t be hard on them. Spell it slowly and ask them to repeat it five times. We often remember what we keep hearing or repeating, so this one is a great strategy to put into action.

Choose the Correct One

You can quickly write down three spellings of the same word and ask your child to select the one with the correct spelling. At first, they might get a little confused but they will be able to select the correct spelling in no time.

Apart from following these steps, you’ve to make sure you encourage your child and not discourage them even when they’re wrong. Tell them they will get there and boost their confidence.

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