Do you find your children moan and groan when you tell them it’s time to do their science homework? There are simple solutions to make science fun. Kids are curious by nature and like asking questions. If they see, hear, or feel that which comes in their way, they’ll probably ask, ‘Why?”

Parents and teachers can make science learning fun and exciting by emboldening their curiosity about their surroundings. Teaching them how to find answers about the questions they’ve asked for themselves also helps. After all, science is all about finding the solutions to ‘why.’ 

Speaking of science, most kids tend to struggle with physics. And speaking of science, most kids also tend to struggle with physics and mathematics. Unless they have a solid understanding of the fundamentals, they will fall behind. Physics and math are inter-related, and if you live near a physics tuition center, you may want to consider enrolling your child. But there are things you can do right now at home to make science learning fun.

5 Tips to Make Science Fun for Your Kids

1.   Exploring Your Backyard or Park

When was the last time you took your child in your backyard or park for the science’s sake? It’s not something most parents think of doing. But science is best learned through observations and experiments. Your child will ask you “how do chicks hatch”, or “how does a caterpillar morphs into a butterfly?”, or how plants sprout from the seeds. The best way to make kids fascinated by science is through nature. In the real world, students can learn the secrets of science by observing the captivating development process of plants, insects, and animals.

In nature, teachers can also find quite a few science experiments that they can ask the students to do at home. For example, you can ask kids to keep a journal on how many days it takes for larvae to morph into a butterfly or the different types of butterflies in their yard.

2.  Studying Nature

Why does it rain? Why do the seasons change? How many stars are there in the universe? Why do we see stars at night? I’m guessing you’ve heard these questions from your child many times? Answering these questions about nature will generate interest in your kids about science. Take your children for long hikes and ask them to look out for the natural surroundings, including birds, trees, and rocks as you travel.

If you’re looking at clouds, tell them about the many varieties of clouds. If you’re studying birds, point out the different birds, and if chemistry is your thing, let them know what makes their soda fizzle.

3.  Find Out How Things Work

Whether your kids want to become doctors or engineers in the future or not, kids always get fascinated by how things work. They want to understand the scientific explanations and principles behind everyday technologies and phenomena.  So they want to read the books about Thomas Edison and other such famous inventors. They want to attempt to come up with experiments on their own to show how their inventions work.

If your child asks you for help with his or her science project, like making a rocket from a recycled water bottle, lend them a hand. You can help them find household items or demonstrate how physics principles work. If your child struggles with math, don’t rule out getting a math tutor to help them with their scientific calculations.

4.  Be Practical

You can’t learn science without experiments or hands-on activities. Sure, reading books about science, as well as biographies of famous scientists and inventors day-in and day-out, will give them knowledge. But never actually doing a science experiment or witnessing any scientific demonstrations is dull.

Learning science is a full-on hands-on activity, period. But before that, find out what everyday issues affects and interest your students? Do they like hunting for exotic bugs? Are they interested in making a fake volcano using vinegar and baking soda? Do they want to create glow-in-the-dark germs? There are tons of projects like these they can do throughout the year.

5.  Read Biographies

Children need to be encouraged and inspired. And what better way to instill scientific curiosity in kids by persuading them to read biographies about famous scientists such as Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, and Marie Curie? Making biographies about scientists and inventors as part of your science studies will help kids stay engaged. It will make them curious to know about how these people worked, lived, and how they discovered facts about science.

The achievements of these types of people have greatly impacted the world and can often be looked at as super heroes. But simple reading about them can show how scientists and inventors are just real people with ideas who wanted to make a difference in our world. Who knows, it could inspire your child to become the next famous scientist!

As parents, we want to do everything we can to make sure our kids have good reading skills. We entrust our children to the school system a few hours each weekday but are fully aware that what we do at home is just as important, if not even more vital to developing good reading habits. Sounds good right? But there is one problem.

I used the work ‘habit’ when referring to our desire to inspire kids to love reading. The problem is, a focus on developing good reading habits is the wrong goal. On it’s own, it won’t be enough.

Don’t misunderstand. Healthy habits can make it easier for any of us to do things we may not particularly feel like doing on any given day. But to inspire a love for reading is to instill the passion needed to fuel a lifestyle that ‘always includes reading’.

The infographic below gives some great tips on how to set the stage for kids of any age to begin a journey into a lifelong passion for reading. They go hand in hand with good resources that enable parents to do more than just laying a solid foundation. Setting our kids up for success is only the beginning.

Early literacy is vital to child development and lifelong learning. Yet, there is a literacy gap in our world that makes it that much more difficult for kids to get the jump start they need. In any situation, kids need all the help they can get.

We’ve talked about inspiring our kids to want to read. We’ve talked about instilling passion. One way we can help is by introducing them to books they can identify with. This can include authors that have a common upbringing or common ethnicity.

What is your child interested in? Is is fantasy, science fiction? Do they want to be a veterinarian when they grow up or a fireman? Search online with your child about topics they may be interested in. Then take them to the library regularly to exploration a world of themes, ideas and authors from all walks of life.

While early literacy is important, it’s never too late to get started.

Brought to you by Head Start Reading: Reading Resources for Parents!

Although it is unfortunate that the Coronavirus is continuing to spread, the quarantine has provided us with an abundance of quality time to spend with our kids. With eLearning on the rise, it’s important to keep our kids’ brains moving. Doing so will help them to perform at their best given the challenges eLearning can present. It will also help them relax as they spend more time at home.

Healthy eating can help in many other ways as well. Since children are getting out less, their immune system is vulnerable. Under quarantine, we receive less Vitamin D, exercise less, and can even go a little stir-crazy. With nutrient-packed meals and snacks, your children can be a little more at ease in their new, but still temporary, full-time environment.

Furthermore, this is a great time to get creative in the kitchen. Tasty meals can help fade the negative stigma most children have surrounding nutritional eats, and can even go on to make them prefer fruits and vegetables rather than being resilient to them. Here’s what you can do:

Choose your foods and ingredients wisely. Although the scars of the Coronavirus outbreak can heighten your anxiety as a parent, be careful not to frivolously fill your shopping cart with just any food. Make a list, and limit the number of times you visit the grocery store to prevent bringing back the virus to your children.

When cooking at home, be intentional about meal prepping and portion control. It’s best to avoid highly processed snacks such as cookies, crackers, chips, and canned foods containing high-sodium and high-fructose corn syrup. Low-fat popcorn and nuts make great mid-day snacks; and for dinner, pairing pasta or rice with a protein, such as fish, can fill your little ones’ bellies for much longer.

Lastly, be aware of the “Pandemic Pantry,” the list of items shopped are stockpiling. These include canned foods, hand sanitizer, toilet paper, and bottled water. Buying a water filter can help alleviate the purchasing of bottled water, and given the recent governmental policies, we need not fear being disconnected from your water supply while under quarantine – even if bills begin to pile up.

Taking the opportunity to show your kids healthy eating habits can benefit them now, and also influence them to continue a great diet post-quarantine. If you read the infographic below, you can gain more information on how to eat healthy under a quarantine. Take care, be safe, and enjoy your extra family time.

Now that the Coronavirus has been officially deemed a pandemic, public schools and universities around the world are shifting from campus to distance learning in efforts to prevent the virus’ spreading. To date, the virus has prompted school closures in at least 119 countries and has disrupted the education of more than 862 million students.

Even though online learning is a mostly-foreign concept to our kids, they seem to be loving it.

In fact, it’s led more students to become interested in obtaining their college degree through virtual means. Get this: 60% of eLearners believe that online classes help them improve their soft skills such as writing, paying closer attention to detail, perfecting their oral communication, engaging in teamwork, developing time management skills, and helping them with critical thinking/problem-solving.

Still, there are a bit of challenges that arise with learning online – primarily, technology access. 44% of students in low-income families don’t own a computer, and nearly 18% of school-age children don’t have at-home Internet access.

You’ll be happy to know that a computer may not be exactly essential to your child’s educational journey. Today, most eLearning programs are smartphone and tablet-compatible, providing students with a wider range of options to receive their new content. However, the 30 million school children relying on free/reduced lunches remain in a tough spot. 

As if the world weren’t fast-paced enough, COVID-19 is changing every corner of the world as we know it. The last thing we need during times like these is for our childrens’ education to be put at risk. Luckily, eLearning has a solution.

Check out the infographic below for the full scoop on the future of distance learning.