Sometimes parents get so caught up with their children learning to read and write that they forget to make learning a "fun" activity for them. Here are a few things to remember when trying to get your child to learn a concept.
- When you are teaching children aged 4 and under, they do not have the ability to sit down and listen longer than 10 minutes. Actually, they do not have the ability to listen to anything longer than 10 minutes if they are not being interactive.
- Try to make learning "hands-on". If you are in the kitchen cooking, have your child identify the letter names and sounds with "letter magnets". Leapfrog has a wonderful toy that sings the sound of each letter while sitting on the refrigerator.
- Don't make learning painful. If your child is becoming restless, bored, or aggravated with learning just STOP! The last thing you want to do is make your child lose their love for learning.
- Try to incorporate your child's favorite characters so that you may hold their attention for a longer period.
- Don't try to teach your child around naptime or bedtime. They are not going to remember anything if their mind is already half asleep.
- Always teach to your child's ability. If your child does not know all of the letter names and letter sounds, do not attempt to teach them to read. You will frustrate them and they will believe that learning to read is to way too hard.