How Home Learning Can Be Less Structured and More Self-Directed

Managing a massive pile of worksheets and homework could be exhausting for you and your little one. When kids are given some choice over their learning styles, it could enable them to engage in subjects that interest them and help them get as creative as they can at their home learning!

When kids are allowed more time for deep exploration and self-directed learning, they can build creative and critical thinking skills and a love for core subjects. Here are some ways you can encourage this type of learning in kids:

Exploring Science-Structured Learning:

Simple exercises like observing the clouds, throwing a toy in the air, cycling up a hill, and even spinning in circles can teach your kids about structured learning physics concepts! You could even instruct your kids to spend some time observing their surroundings in the backyard while you teach them about ecosystems and food chains. 

You could even carry out a fun science experiment for kids in your backyard learn at home. All you need to do is cover a big leaf with a plastic bag, seal it tight around the branch, leave it there for many hours, and then observe how the bag collects water. Explain to your kids this is called transpiration!

Understanding Math-Teaching Kids at Home:

Whether it’s through cooking or a simple activity of adding up numbers on number plates, understanding math can be easy teaching kids at home! Even counting flowers while on a nature walk, hunting for shapes in their surroundings, or adding numbers to your Twister math can make your child love math.

Osmo’s fun learning games for kids that teach math include the Math Wizard series, Numbers, and Pizza Co. These math games for kids take the fear out of figures and keep kids engaged!

Mastering Social Studies-Teaching Kids at Home:

Once your child learns an important historical fact or a landmark event, ask them to show you what they learned by creating a puppet show! Another way to help your kids master social studies is to constantly interact with your child while watching a historical movie teaching kids at home. Ask them insightful questions about the cultural changes they observe in the movie and your own, and just their general observations about the movie.

One such interactive learning game that teaches your kids about the various landmarks in the world is Osmo’s Detective Agency. In this game, your child gets to virtually hunt for clues across the world and solve an exciting mystery!

Learning Language-Learn at Home Resources:

Beyond reading textbooks and school books, allow your child to choose books on their own learn at home resources. You could even read as a family to make it a more social experience! Once you’ve finished, have a discussion with your child. You could ask them about their favorite character from the book, or just ask them to provide you with a summary of what they’ve understood.

There are also many board games for kids that can help your child build their vocabulary. Scrabble is one such popular example! You could also play a game of treasure hunt where children read the clues aloud could improve their reading skills. 

Don’t forget to check out Osmo’s Words game. It enables your kids to solve challenging word puzzles with the help of on-screen clues and hints!

Art and Music-Home Learning:

While a lot of importance is usually placed on core STEM subjects, art is equally important to spark creativity and imagination! You could encourage kids home learning to sculpt with playdough, make cute crafts at home, and even draw simple objects they see around the house. 

Another way to get kids to embrace the arts is through music! Music can help stimulate the mind and keep kids active learn at home and engaged. Osmo’s Coding Jam game is one such game that teaches a core skill (coding!) through music!

We hope these self-directed home learning strategies will help your little one! We understand that it could be hard to juggle between caregiving and work during this pandemic. With these self directed strategies and games for kids, not only will your child remain engaged, but they will learn in a manner that aligns better with their development.