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Wisconsin State Journal
BY GENA KITTNER
Tinkering with LEGOs can inspire all kinds of creativity during this break from school.
With schools closed, parents around the nation are getting a crash-course in what it means to educate children at home.
But keeping children engaged in learning, while trying to work yourself, doesn’t have to mean stacks of worksheets and a fully-charged tablet (though that can certainly be part of the plan).
Youth experts around Madison have plenty of suggestions to offer when it comes to keeping children happy and learning during this unprecedented and unexpected break from the classroom.
Kia Karlen is the education director at the Madison Children’s Museum and oversees the museum’s programming and events.
Karlen said the museum is offering video programs posted on its Facebook page, however she has some other ideas of how to keep kids engaged in learning while not in school.
For school-aged children, Karlen suggests to “enlist them to help with practical things.”
“Kids can get really excited about meal planning and cooking,” she said.
And if children are planning meals, parents should relax about having lunch be overly nutritious, at least to start.
If the kids are excited to make hot dogs, don’t worry if the meal is lacking in veggies at first, Karlen said. “Let go of the idea that your kids have to produce a meal that has every food group.”
She suggests the website Vroom.org, which offers activities appropriate for your child’s age centered around every day chores — things such as having your preschooler help sort laundry by matching colors, Karlen said.
Expand your definition of “reading,” advises Madison youth librarian Carissa Christner. Reading out loud to your children counts, as do audio books and podcasts, she said.
While screen time is likely to be high the next few weeks, make it count by finding good how-to videos for things like tuning up a bike, which older kids can try to accomplish on their own.
“It’s a great time for kids to work on their tinkering skills and puttering,” Karlen said. “And there’s no pressure to make it work perfectly the first time.”
In times of crisis it’s important to instill in children the need to help and volunteer, however this particular situation, which requires people to stay largely at home, presents a unique challenge.
Karlen suggests thinking of elderly people within your family’s network and sending them letters to let them know you’re thinking of them.
“Snail mail’s an innovative program (for children) these days,” Karlen said.
Social distancing doesn’t mean to children have to stay inside all day.
Karlen suggests looking for a lesser-known or populated trail or green space for children to get some wiggles out.
Even with orders to stay home, it’s important to get children outside, even if it’s just to the backyard, said Kia Karlen, education director at the Madison Children’s Museum.
For pre-school children, ages 2 and a half to 5, the recommendation for screen time is an hour, to no more than 2 hours a day.
Kirkorian suggests going to commonsensemedia.org for recommendations on the best online education tools.
The site is comprehensive and reviews and rates all media content for children, including apps and television show she said. The site also includes several Top 10 lists, which are the most commonly viewed feature, Kirkorian said.
Kirkorian said while digital learning isn’t always as good as face-to-face instruction, there are benefits.
“It’s really clear beginning in first grade children can learn from screens,” Kirkorian said. “There’s definitely strong evidence that kids can learn in this context.”
Tablets and screen time can promote learning if they’re used wisely, experts say.
Teachers may be able to implement some technology into lessons that may have been clunky before, she said. For example, when studying an artist, the teacher can have students virtually tour a museum on their own device, whereas before many students may have been crowded around a laptop, she said.
Kirkorian said all of her instruction, which is at a college level, is recorded, close-captioned and transcribed, allowing students to go back and reference, or even re-watch certain lectures.
“College students love this aspect of online classes,” she said. “Some students might learn better in this environment.”
Online learning also bridges the gap between class and home learning, getting parents more involved in their child’s education, Kirorian said. “This (unexpected break) is just going to streamline that process,” she said.
However, Kirkorian said, there is a great concern about a “digital divide” where all student might not have access to a device or high-speed Internet, allowing them to participate in online learning.
In addition, “keeping a schedule is super important for kids, for all of us,” Kirkorian said, adding that as fun as it is to work in your PJs, it’s important to get up at the same time, get dressed.
But while some structure is important, not all learning needs to be done according to a schedule.
Involve children in household chores — especially cooking and meal planning — during this unexpected break from school, advises Kia Karlen, education director for the Madison Children’s Museum.
“It’s OK to riff a little,” said Carissa Christner, who is a youth librarian and has been the children’s “app expert” of sorts for the Madison Public Library for the last five years.
As parents adjust to having their children do more of their education at home, she encourages people to “expand your definition of learning.”
Education at home is not just about children sitting at a table completing worksheets, she said. “It’s about thinking about learning as a broader thing that happens when kids engage in things they are interested in,” she said.
This is a great time to work on skills like problem solving, Christner said. “It’s more about challenging the kids to figure out what problems they want to solve … what are you curious about, what do you want to know about.”
For example, a child might be curious if he or she can build a tower using paper towel rolls stacked on their side, Christner said.
“I personally have been working with my kids on basic life skills, like laundry, cooking and schedule-making,” she said. Those tasks, to some extent, require math and following directions, she said, adding these are important “soft skills” to know.
As a librarian, “of course, I think that reading is great, no matter what,” she said.
However she worries about parents forcing the a child to sit and read for 30 minutes, just because that’s what’s suggested.
“I just don’t think that forcing someone to read something they’re not enjoying … is ever going to make someone identify themselves as a reader,” Christner said. “To me, feeling excited about books is more important than reading for 30 minutes a day.”
To that end, parents should expand their definition of “reading.”
“Reading to your kids totally counts as (the child) reading,” Christner said. “Reading together is a really awesome practice.”
