Homeschooling your Child: teaching them English at home
- Miss Marilena
- Jan 15, 2024
- 8 min read
Updated: Jan 16, 2024
Your Ultimate Guide to become an "English teacher" for your child at home and prepare them as much as you can for their future English Lessons: Everything You Need to Know
This is a summary of things every parent can do at home for 15 minutes a day that will help their children as young as 3 years old to learn English. 15 minutes??? Yep, you read that right! I will give you all my tips and how to in a short blog post to help you boost your child's confidence in English.
Let's go!
Have you ever wanted to help your child feel more comfortable when speaking English? Many of us who speak a language other than English in our everyday life struggle to feel comfortable when we need to communicate in English. I bet it has happened to you or someone you know. I personally see it all the time. People feeling ashamed or bad about their accent or their luck of vocabulary or grammar.
When it comes to children it breaks my heart to see them feeling ashamed to use English in case they make a mistake. What we can do as parents is help them start their English learning journey in a positive manner. Why not give them a big boost so when the time comes to start learning English at school they are not only comfortable but even ahead of their age! This will be my ultimate guide for parents with young children, as young as 3 years old, that want to help them learn English at home. This guide can even be used with teenagers as well who are not doing well in their English lessons (might need to adjust the activities but I bet it can work). I hope this helps any parents out there who really want to go that extra mile with their children's education. As always enjoy and don't forget to subscribe so you never miss a post from me.
Some Quick Notes for Parents
Let's talk about accent. In terms of how someone sounds when speaking English my personal view has always been and always will be that as long as you can understand and be understood it doesn't play a role! Why does it matter if you sound British or Cypriot when talking? Pakistani or Indian? Italian or Russian? As long as your English can be understood and communication is accomplished then BAM you are an English speaker. That is my personal view and it is certainly a polarizing one, but I will always value communication over accent. I hope you do too because it can be something that holds you personally back from helping your child get better at English.
Let's face it. Not every English teacher in Cyprus has a British accent. I certainly don't. And if you value that kind of thing then I guess it's best not to help your child learn English and rather wait until you find that native speaker who will. It's important to know that accent and pronunciation are two different things. A child usually stops acquiring accents by the age of 3 but they can always master pronunciation. Paired with a good teacher children can speak clearly and well. So decide what's most important to you and decide.
Last, but certainly not least. It doesn't take all day!! Practicing English with your child everyday shouldn't take more than 15 minutes a day. I know it sounds too little but believe me it makes a HUGE difference. The most important thing is to be consistent and make it fun. If you practice everyday in the morning while you get ready for school, for example while having breakfast, it will become an excellent habit for any type of school practice. Your child later on can practice their spelling or their math in that 15 minute window. Set a timer for a 15 minute slot in your morning routine and get to it. You will see! It will make a huge difference in your child's learning. If you are not a morning person do it over dinner time or bath time. Any time of the day can work and can even help you teach the appropriate vocabulary of that activity.
Ok. Now that you all know what I believe and think of the subject, along with my little bits of advice, I am pretty much sure we can begin! Let's get started!
1. Why Is Teaching your Child at Home Important?
Learning English can be difficult but sometimes children start their learning journey on the wrong foot. I have taught many many kids these last ten years and the students that always make it the furthest are the ones that began their learning journey with confidence. Confidence is key and unfortunately not all kids got it. In my personal experience students who start strong, keep going strong until the end and those who struggle at the beginning have the hardest time to keep up with the rising level of English as they grow up. So give them the tools from the beginning, at home, before they even have a single English class to feel confident and in control with the language.
Beware though! Teachers are really important in your child's learning journey. A good or a bad teacher can make or break your child's confidence. It's essential that you keep an eye on your child's comments and complaints. I have said it before and I will say it again; A bad teacher can destroy your child's relationship with English and A good teacher can boost your child's love for English to the roof. Despite that, confidence is also important as I said before. So take this guide as your chance to give your child the greatest opportunity to start their learning journey on a positive note.
2. Where would you start?
Are you ready to be amazed? The secret of teaching is that you start at the beginning. I know, I know shocking. Not as glamorous as you would imagine it to be. But it works! Trust me.
The Alphabet is a major point in our English learning journey. What if I told you that I am teaching 14 year olds that still struggle with letter recognition? It's not uncommon and it is certainly not the first time I have encountered this difficulty. Same goes with numbers, colours and shapes. These are concepts that little children establish in their own language early on but when it comes to a second language they are usually overlooked. Teachers usually hurry to catch up with all the grammar and vocabulary that needs to be covered for the end of the year exams.
As a parent is your chance to shine! Make the alphabet a major source of learning. Take your time and establish a routine with each and every letter of the alphabet. Use the letters to guide you through your practice. For a whole month every day learn about a letter. Remember you only have 15 minutes so in order to maximize that time with your child you might need to have things prepared before hand.
For example, Day 1 we learn about the letter A. It's important to remember that children learn sounds first and then letters. So at the beginning of your learning journey focus on what sound every letter makes. Check YouTube and look up the sounds to make sure you are teaching them correctly. I would take the time to print some pictures or borrow them from a game. Some of those pictures are things that begin with A some are not. You can also print a handout with many letters on it and let your child circle only the A's. You can find plenty of free Alphabet letter recognition handouts on Pinterest and Google. Or even buy an Alphabet workbook. If you are interested check out my shop for my own Handwriting Workbooks.
It's important to remember that children learn sounds first and then letters. So at the beginning of your learning journey focus on what sound every letter makes.
Sing the alphabet, act out an animal that begins with that letter. Spell one single word that begins with the letter and practice again and again. Make a list of pictures and circle the ones that start with the letter. Create a hidden alphabet path where the child needs to highlight all the same letters to reach to the treasure. Create a project notebook where you draw something for each letter (eg. Astronaut for A, Bear for B, Car for C, Dragon for D, etc.). There are a million and one thing you can do with your 15 minutes, if you have any other creative ideas let me know about them down the comments. I love reading and using new ideas in my lessons and it will most certainly help everyone that uses this guide as well.
I am personally in the process of creating a parental guide to homeschooling young children at your own space and time. If that is something that would interest you, let me know down the comments
3. Set a routine and don't budge from it
It's time to start your 15 minute practice so what do you do first? I suggest coming up with a routine that suits you and your child. Always start AND end your English practice the same way. It makes a huge difference when you stick to something for a long time. Even if your child can follow you the very first days as time passes you will see that they will remember more and more of your welcome and goodbye routine. Here are some ideas of how your routine could go:
Sing the Alphabet
Greet each other in English and say your names and how you are you that day
Sing an English song such as (Row row your boat or little turtle - I suggest watching Miss Rachel's songs on YouTube)
You can use any of these or all of it. But remember you also need time to practice the letter of the day. The next day I would also revise the letter from the day before. Remind them how the letter sounds and some words and then introduce the next one. After the month is up continue with colours and shapes the same way. As time goes by you will introduce animals and everyday objects.
I wouldn't bother with grammar as that comes naturally while you are both talking. For now at this age and level focus on building a strong vocabulary and a lot of confidence. Now you are making sure that your child is not coming face to face with English for the first time at school and gets scared by it. Instead you are giving them the biggest boost you possibly can to let them flourish.
I have my own Handwriting Workbooks you can find in my online store and I also teach privately English to young children online once a week if that is something you are interested in and would work for your family.
And remember I'm always here for you. If you need more advice or have any questions write them below in the comment section and I will try to answer as best as I can. You can also help yourself and get a book that will help your child's writing such as A Handwriting Workbook. I'm happy to tell you that I have two of those :) so don't forget to check them out if you are looking for one. Also give yourself some grace. You are trying your best and doing everything you can. Homeschooling isn't easy or for the faint of heart but it surely is the best gift you can give to your child. I'm proud of you parent! Until the next time. Toodalloo!
If you liked this post you might also like this one:
Did you know that I have created my own Activity Books for children? Check them out here on my shop and feel free to ask me anything
If you liked this post and you don't want to miss another post coming from me simply enter your email in my email list and you will always be the first to receive a new post full of ideas and tips for learning English with fun.
I'm sad we didn't find you sooner Miss Marilena. At least other parents can use your guide with their children. Thank you so much for all your hard work💖