Even kids are going to get tired of homeschooling if they’re not used to it. The first few weeks might have worked and you could have a seamless schedule laid out, but we can’t shake off the possibility that they will get bored of this routine after some time.
Instead of forcing them to go through your lesson plan, why not teach them basic life skills? This is a good opportunity for you to bond as well. They will be entertained, but at the same time they will learn important life lessons. Here’s a basic life skills list if you want to get on with it.
Basic life skills list
1. Cleaning
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Involve them in house chores. Now that most of your family members are home, it’s the perfect time to teach them about taking tasks and doing their part. Especially to kids, if you want to teach them to be responsible, start with the little things. Housekeeping is a bit complicated and there are tasks that they might not be able to do yet, so think of simple ones that you think they can handle.
2. Cooking
If you have a toddler and you think they’re too young to be in the kitchen, then you can just make them watch cooking videos with you or play pretend using their kitchen toy set! It doesn’t have to be actual. The goal is to expose them to it, so when they are in the right age, they won’t be clueless.
For parents who have kids that are old enough, you can make them start with basics like washing fruits and veggies. Don’t make them do tasks that will involve knives or gas just yet to avoid accidents.
3. Public Speaking
It’s important to teach your kids to communicate well. Public speaking also helps in building up confidence so it’s good if you start them young.
One exercise or activity you can do is talking about certain topics that you’ll pick through draw lots and make them explain it or give their opinion about it. You don’t have to be super technical, just listen to their intent and thoughts and go from there.
4. First aid
One of the most important life skills that everyone should learn, but actually a small percentage only gets to practice. Teach your kids about basic first aid because it will really come in handy in the future. It could be simple practices like applying pressure to a wound, icing a swollen injury or pinching your nostrils when nose bleeding.
5. Writing
Yes, they do it everytime, but creative writing is actually an important life skill. Teach them early about proper sentence construction, grammar and spelling. It is technical, but you can go easy on them because kids won’t be able to grasp these methods easily.
6. Self-defense
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If you happen to know basic self-defense, then teach your kids. But if you don’t, then watch videos about it and learn together. You can’t be with your kids 24/7, so equip them with skills that they can use to protect themselves. Just make sure that you warn them not to use this skill for bad reasons!
7. Time management
Even adults have a hard time doing this. So don’t expect your kids to get it after teaching them once. This should be a continuous lesson and make them apply it instead of just talking about it. You can start with explaining to them about screen time because this is one of the things that they are most concerned with.
8. Budgeting money
Handling money and budgeting can actually be a fun activity! You can play pretend with your kids and have them budget money and buy grocery. You can also use this to test their basic math knowledge.
9. Gardening
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If you have a space in your house where you can grow a plant, then teach your kids how to do it! Aside from it being a recreational activity, you are also teaching them to be environmentally responsible.
This basic life skill list is just a guide for parents like you. If you have other things that you actually want to teach your kids aside from these, then do so! Don’t be afraid to experiment and make fun learning for them. You can also ditch the lesson plan for now, if it’s not really working. The approach is always more important than the lesson you’re teaching. So go ahead and listen to your parent’s gut!
Source:
National Geographic
Read also:
15 smart parenting tips to raise good kids
