Covid-19 definitely placed more emphasis on the need for parents to have go-to resources to help their children learn at home, but home learning doesn’t have to look a certain way to be effective.
Although it may feel like a child can just ride out the wave, young children are ready to move forward in their educational development. They are primed to begin reading, working on numbers, responding to questions, etc.
That is why when Covid-19 entered the United States and schools shut down, I immediately began working on resources that would be able to follow my students’ home and would be accessible for both children and parents allowing the child to continue to work on those developing skills that they will lean on educationally for the rest of their lives.
Physical Resources/Activities: High-Frequency Sight-Word Bundles
I have a whole range of reading activities for students, especially beginning readers. Take a look at this post that outlines the many different activities included in my High-Frequency Sight-Word bundles. Each activity includes flashcards, cut and spell activities, box spelling manipulatives, word searches, word scrambles, spelling practice, and reading discrimination practice.
These High-Frequency Sight-Word bundles are great for introducing sight-words and working on each word in a variety of contexts. The activities build on each other and give students ample time to practice each word.
My High-Frequency Sight-Word bundles generally include 50 words, but my freebie covers just the first 10 and is a great starting place to see if the activities will work in your home.
Go-To Digital Resources: Boom Cards
A series of resources I quickly made when my students were taken out of the classroom before the end of the year were Boom Card resources through the Boom Learning platform. Boom Cards are a highly interactive and inexpensive option for parents who have tablets or Ipads available for students.
Boom Cards are easy for students to manipulate and are self-checking, so students can work independently on the activities in the car, at the table, or even while sitting at a sibling’s event or activity.
Boom Cards can be used to work on any skill, so I have begun to adjust many of my resources to this platform. Here are some different resources you may find valuable based on the age and skill of your little learner.
For more information on Boom Card and the Boom Learning platform, check out this blog post!
Just because schools are closed, doesn’t mean your child has to pause their learning. All of the resources in this post can be used to help prepare your child for kindergarten and beyond!