Today’s entry to my ‘Activities for Children at Home’ series focuses on English. If you missed my previous entries, I have covered Maths, History, Geography and Art over the last three days. It is my aim to provide you with a wide range of educational suggestions to keep your children occupied while they are at home. ?
Writing a Letter – Ask your child to write a letter to a friend or family member they haven’t seen for while. Or, if you want something a bit different, why not get them to write to the author of one of their favourite books?
Leaflet or Poster – This is a great creative activity that also lets children practise their non-fiction writing. Give your child a topic (e.g. local area, staying healthy, looking after animals) and let them think about the layout, the language and the imagery for their leaflet or poster.
Performance Poetry – Choose a suitable poem with your child and ask them to learn it off by heart. They can change the tone of their voice and include actions. Actions will help them to remember the different parts. Once they are happy that they have memorised it and they are confident with their performance, they could recite the poem to the rest of the family.
Literary Recipes – Children’s books are full of wonderful culinary creations – particularly those by Roald Dahl. With help from your children, make your own version of one of these creations and then follow it up by writing out the recipe. Read my BFG Frobscottle lesson plan for more ideas.
Puppet Show – We all know reading is important so I’d definitely encourage your children to read whilst at home. However, to make it a bit different, why don’t you challenge your child to retell a story they have read by creating their very own puppet show? They could share this with the rest of the family one evening – a perfect way to encourage reading comprehension as well as getting those creative juices flowing.
Drama – Children could write a short script that they could later act out with siblings or parents (if you feel like releasing your inner thespian). Their script could be based on a beloved book, film or TV programme or simply from their imagination. When writing their script, they will need to think about layout, characters, props and stage directions.
Story Time – Daily reading can sometimes be considered a chore by some children but it doesn’t need to be. Reading is important so try to make it enjoyable for your children. Perhaps you could sit together as a family each evening and take it in turns to read a short story. This way children are practising their reading whilst also improving their listening skills and hearing good examples of reading aloud – all while spending quality time with their family. If this is not possible, encourage independent reading, which can be a great way for children to unwind and get lost in an imaginary world!
News Report – You could task children with giving a news report at the end of the day, reporting back to the rest of the family about what has happened during the day. Throughout the day, they could act as journalists interviewing different family members then children can role-play as news reporters to share the news. Alternatively, you could point them in the direction of the Newsround website and they could sum up the national news.
I hope you have found some of these suggestions useful. If you try any of them, use the button below to let me know how you get on. ?
Don’t forget to check out the previous posts for activities relating to Maths, History, Geography and Art. Check back tomorrow for suggestions related to Music and PE. ?
