Help your child become a
reader and a writer. Providebooks, and
other "print rich" items so your child will see letters and words
and want to explore them. Curiosity takes over!
Read to your child and
have him/her read to you. Askquestions about what
was read. Discuss the material. "Can you tell me what
happened in the story?" "Why did the elephant run away from the
monkey?" "What could he have done differently?" "What part of the
story did you like best?" "Why?" First graders regularly use
critical thinking skills in their daily lives. You can encourage
and strengthen them by asking questions, listening to your
child’s responses and discussing their
viewpoints.
Let your child catch YOU
reading regularly!
Go on outings
together: store, mall, beach, parks, city, bus, plane, library,
museum, restaurants. Talk about what you see, hear, feel, taste,
smell, etc. Make sure you listen to your child’s descriptions
and help them find words to describe what they experience: "Mom,
that man has on funny clothes!" "The trees in the forest are
moving. Why are they doing that?." "The sunshine feels warm on my
face." "The ice cream is cold and sweet." You can help develop
critical thinking by asking them questions about what they
describe to you. "Why do YOU think the trees are moving?" "Why do
you think the man’s clothes look funny?" "What is your
favorite place to visit, favorite flavor of ice cream, favorite
color?", etc. These questions cause children to reflect on their
thinking.
Make collections!
Children love to collect things; rocks, shiny things, shells,
buttons, keys, coins, anything small that can be stored as
"treasures". Collections are great things to talk about, write
about, make up stories about, and, they are useful for
counting, sorting, classifying, grouping, and for practicing
addition and subtraction with real objects so children
understand these math concepts.
Help with math skills by:
playing games which involve counting, adding, subtracting and
basic multiplying with your child: Uno, Yahtzee, etc.
Cooking is a great way to teach measurement, proportions,
fractions, more/less, and many other math concepts we all use in
our daily lives.
Give your child
choices of activities, chores, ways to spend time, or
foods. "Would you like crackers with peanut butter or apple slices
for your snack?" "Should we have salad or green beans for dinner?
"Would you like to hear a story right now or read to me?" "Would
you rather set the table or fold the clothes?" "Do you want to
pick up your toys now or put away your clothes?" These are daily
decisions young children can make, yet adults often make them for
them. In these situations, the adult is clearly in charge, yet the
child is able to have some control. This leads to
independence and teaches responsibility.
Help your child select items
or topics to share at school. Sharing or Show & Tell,
teaches children pride in themselves and to respect the
diversity among others. Sharing also helps develop oral
communication skills and helps children work toward the goal
of effective and responsible communication.
Talk to your child about
feelings. Let him/her know those feelings are important.
Remind them that all people feel like they do at times. This
teaches respect, understanding, &
acceptance.
Provide for your child to
play with others, to share, and cooperate. This will help him/her
make friends, as well as learn to work together
cooperatively with classmates.
Teach your child to
button and tie if he/she still needs help.
Volunteer at
school!
Remember that YOU are
your child’s first teacher. The impact of your words
and actions are the most important!