With worrying statistics that 30,000 children a year leave primary school with a reading age of 7 or below, it’s understandable that we want to help our child’s education while they're at the crucial learning stage at junior school.
A new online teaching course, from educational website Keeping Up With My Kids, aims to teach us, the parents, about what our children are learning at school and modern teaching methods. So the next time your child brings home tricky maths or literacy homework, you won't be scratching your head and looking for answers on the internet.
The courses are aimed at parents of children in Years 3 and 4 (typically aged 7 and 8) and focus on English and Maths. You've got to be committed, as each module will take you around 2 hours to finish, although there is no time limit so you can take as long as you need and modules can be done as many times as you wish. Some of the things you'll learn (or relearn) about include definitions of adjectives and verbs to poetry in English, and bridging and number bonds in Maths.
“I had no idea that my daughter was doing such advanced work. I was in secondary school before I got to most of what she is doing at 8 years old,” Suzy from Hampshire said after doing the course.
The courses, which were designed by teacher and mother Claire Coles from Kent, aim to bring parents up to date with subject material as well as modern teaching methods.
“Teaching methods have changed dramatically since parents were at school themselves, which often leads to children and their parents becoming frustrated with each other. If parents can understand what, and how, their kids are learning in the classroom, they can mirror that support at home thus helping their kids achieve more from their education, gain life skills and eventually, better career prospects,” explains Claire.
The courses cost £49.00 each to download and can also bought on CD Rom for £59.50. If you buy both subject courses then you get a £10.00 discount.
If you do take one of the courses, let us know how you get on...
