Online Education for Kids: Tips to Make Learning Fun and Effective

Introduction

Learning online is an incredible opportunity for kids to schedule their day according to them and learn without time constraints. The internet has made online education very accessible to kids all across the world. One of the biggest benefits is that kids do not have to travel to attend classes and end up saving a lot of time and money. However, one of the downsides of online education is the lack of in-person contact.

Because of the lack of in-person contact, the child may feel a bit disoriented after attending classes for some time. Additionally, since the teacher cannot check whether the child is studying properly specifically in the case of recorded classes, kids may not listen attentively. To avoid all this, parents and teachers can try making online learning more interesting and engaging for the child.

How to Make Online Classes More Interesting for Kids

Here is how parents and teachers can make online classes more interesting for their children to study.

• Keep it Short

Attending long lectures can become boring for the child. Hence, parents may try making the child attend shorter online classes initially. This may range from 20 minutes to half an hour. Slowly, when a child gets accustomed to attending a half-hour-long class, parents may increase the class duration. For teachers, they can try keeping the session as short and fruitful as possible. This would make sure that children retain the most amount of information even in a shorter time interval.

• Make it Graphically Interesting

One of the biggest benefits of online classes is that it offers a lot of creative liberty to the educator. This means that the educator can integrate many amusing graphics and engaging presentations to explain a concept. Kids may truly enjoy learning through these illustrations and graphics and understand better. However, one can try keeping it as simple as possible and not make it too cluttered. Images that are clear and easy to understand may promote better learning.

• Take Breaks

While teaching a concept that requires a longer amount of time for understanding, teachers can try having small breaks in between. As per The impact of recess breaks in the learning process on primary school students’ concentration skills published in 2023, breaks can give kids the opportunity to self-reflect and focus better when they get back to studying. Moreover, it may prevent overstimulation while helping the child stay in optimal mental state.

• Integrate Play

Another great way of making online education interesting is by engaging the child in experiential play. It may help in enhancing a child's imaginative power, and they may be able to connect theory with logic more effectively. Moreover, as per Developmental Benefits of Play for Children published in 1990, because of its experimental nature, the play might also encourage the child to explore and ask questions on their own. It may also help in hands-on learning to enhance a child’s conceptual clarity. Online educators may make kids play interactive group games virtually or make them draw and assign projects to them.

• Promote Participation

Another way of making kids stay attentive during online classes is to encourage them to speak and ask questions while attending lectures. Teachers can help in bridging the communication gap between students by making everyone introduce themselves. Additionally, teachers may try giving group activities where kids are pushed to interact with each other outside of the online classes. Teachers can organize separate classes for doubt clearing where everyone gets the opportunity to speak.

• Bring Variety

It's important for all the kids to stay engaged and interested in online classes for better retention. To make this possible, teachers can think of some innovative and fun activities such as organizing a pajama day where everyone attends classes in pajamas. Similarly, teachers may also organize a movie party where all the kids get to virtually see a movie together while enjoying food at home. Other activities like ‘describing my favorite toy’ or ‘ storytelling’ can be organized from time to time to promote participation.

• Celebrate Milestones

During online classes, kids shouldn't feel like their efforts are not being recognized. To prevent this from happening, teachers may organize virtual felicitation ceremonies where kids are awarded online medals and certifications for their efforts. Other than this, showing kindness and appreciating a child's efforts from time to time during lectures can also be helpful. If kids are cooperative and show satisfactory performance, then the teacher may also reward them with a fun activity day. Such encouraging experiences may have a positive impact on a child.

Conclusion

By following these effective strategies, keeping young learners engaged in online classes doesn't have to be tricky. It's important to understand that while online education saves a lot of time and resources, it might become a bit boring after a certain point of time. Hence, to keep things interesting, it's important to implement the right strategies for your child to learn and thrive in their life.