Reading - An important Life skill

 

One of the most important Life skill that can be developed from early years is – READING !

Reading can begin from an early age of 6 months. Initially make the child sit in your lap and read the book as though you both are reading it together. As the child sees colorful pictures, he will develop the interest to sit and listen to you. Here, his visual skills are developing. 

As the child grows, his attention span increases and is able to sit in one place for some time. 

Read to the child:

1. Show him the cover of the book – Before reading the book, show the cover of the book to the child and ask him questions about it. This is a great way to engage his interest.

2. Keep him focused – Young children get easily distracted. Start asking questions about characters in the book or ask him to predict what will happen next? This will test their interest and enhance predictive skills.

3. Assess his new skills – As you are reading along, a new word comes up, ask him to guess the meaning of it. You also need to repeatedly ask questions. This enhances language and thinking skills.

4. Make it simple for him – While reading the story, breakdown big / complex sentences for him to understand it better.

5. Use Voice modulation – The characters in a story can be differentiated using different voices for each character. This helps the child to picturize the story. When the story comes alive, he will be thrilled to listen to it. 

6. Ask for their response and reaction – Once the story is completed, ask the child what did he enjoy the most about the story? What is that he did not like in the story? If given a chance, what would he change in the story? This helps is building their confidence level and increases the oral fluency.

7. Different languages - Using a language that you are comfortable in, is a good way to start reading stories and Nursery Rhymes to the child. Being bilingual helps the child with understanding and recognizing syllables, phonics and letters.

It is absolutely normal if the child does not sit through the read aloud but you continue to read as he is listening unintentionally. Here, his listening skills are dominant.

Reading stories with the child is beneficial for the adults too. The special time you spend reading together helps to build your relationship with the child.

Creative ways to spend quality time with your child

 A family is the biggest asset any of us can have and hence it is very important that we spend good time with family and the loves ones. Spending time with them helps to understand each other better.  Here are few tips which I follow in the day to day routine  :- 

• Have a morning ritual where you spend at least 10 minutes with the child doing something as simple as reading a newspaper.

• Involve him in meal preparations as it helps in family bonding & togetherness .

• Encourage conversations at the dinner table where the family members are involved too.

• Share the history of the family & the ancestors.

• Reverse the role and become a child. Ask him questions which involves research and reasons.

• Motivate him to plan a holiday or organize a party.

• Exercise / workout or go for a walk together.

Having a family is a blessing. Make the most of it by bonding and doing activities together. Spend time together and make memories.

To Do list for the EXAM WARRIORS

 

Covid 19 is almost hitting a second wave and another list of restrictions in each state is about to be imposed. With already so much going around, students are stressed about Board exams that are just around the corner. Exams being online with the same syllabus is challenging for many but if organized and planned in advance, it can be fruitful.

Below mentioned are few tips to prepare for Pre- and on-going board exams:

1.     Revise your work
      It is wise that you keep enough time to review your syllabus. Last minute studies are stressful and less productive.

2.    Take help from adults and friends
      It is absolutely fine to take help from your friends, parents or teachers. Let all your doubts be cleared before the exams as it will make you more confident of the topic.

3.    Organize your schedule
      As you are preparing for the revision of subjects, plan your day with combination of easy and                  difficult subjects, preferred and less preferred subjects, favorite and least favorite subjects.

4.     Keep intervals
      It is important that you keep sufficient intervals between your studying time which includes meal            time and play time.

5.     Hobby
      It is extremely important that you continue with your hobby even pre- and on-going exams.                    Hobbies like dancing, reading a story, playing a sport, going for a walk or organizing your                      cupboard should be continued. Engage in any kind of activity that makes you happy.

6.     Look after yourself
     As its rightly said, health is wealth- taking care of yourself by following a healthy and nutritional           diet, keeping hydrated, exercise regime and adequate sleep of 8 -10 hours.

7.    Different methods of revising
      Revising the same notes again and again could become boring and dull. Hence try out various                techniques like reviewing previous year’s question papers, drawing diagrams, mind maps of the             notes or healthy discussions with peers and friends will surely make it interactive and interesting            to strengthen the knowledge of the subject.

8.      Change in study area
       With the on-going pandemic, we cannot venture out a lot but within our comfort zone, we can                 surely have different study areas like studying in living room when no one is around or walking             and revising a chapter in your room. Different background improves memory retention.
                                                     

9.     Give a break to your eyes
      Due to everything being virtual, our eyes are stressed too. It is essentially important that we follow        a routine of eye exercises.

10.     Exam’s essentials
        As the exams approach, it is mandatory that you get all the information regarding the exams very            much in advance. Keep all the essentials like - exam hall ticket, timings of the exams, exam time            table, stationeries - very handy
                                               

Since the government has not yet declared whether the exams would be online or at the Centre, One of my favorite tip is – Have a travel buddy to the Centre who is punctual and jovial as that will motivate you to write your exams with the positive energy.

"Put your best effort on the exam and you will be rewarded with the success."

Build a relationship with your child

 

There is no relationship as beautiful as a parent – child as it gives us a second chance to be a child and grow into a different adult. As my little one (who is no more little) is growing up to be an independent individual, there are few things I have learnt as a parent (& I am still learning from him).

Let this divine relationship be full of love and understanding. One of the golden rules of Parenting is to always show your child the kind of person you want him to be. This is done by modelling the role. 

• Responsible – Accepting your mistake even as an adult, helps him to understand that it is ok to make mistakes but it is best to mend it at the earliest.
• Trust – Encourage him to try and learn from different situations as it will give him confidence to fight his own battles. This has helped him build trust and faith in himself too.
• Time – Time and undivided attention when he comes to you is of utmost importance. Listen to him completely and then react. Overreacting to situation and later regretting should be an avoidable situation.
• Respect – Teach him by example. Let him learn that everyone has their own self-respect, opinion and personal space. Respect is a 2-way street, if you want to get it then you got to give it.
• Rules – Yes, Rules are important to set a routine but be flexible enough to change as per the situation. Certain rules were ok when I was a child but now, they do not hold any purpose. So, it’s better to have rules which are win – win for both.
• Failure – There could be times where he is struggling to complete his assignment or task. Let him figure it out on his own (at least in the beginning). Do not rush to help him out. Let him understand “Failure is not the opposite of success but part of it”.
• Equality – It is very important that we treat the growing off springs equal. Encourage their opinions while planning a holiday, a meal, a visit to a restaurant or anything that involves.

A     Always remember :  

    "Respect is earned, honesty is appreciated, trust is gained and Loyalty is returned".