Adapting to our new reality

        Adapting to our new reality                                          

January 2021

Written by Maria Mazarese

Let’s be real. Our lives have all changed!

This time last year, we were all going on about our lives as ‘normal’. We could never have imagined that things could have changed so drastically. Did you ever think that your school would actually be shut? That thought had never, ever crossed my mind. Did you ever think you wouldn’t be able to go to your favourite clothes shop, to your favourite gym or to your favourite restaurant? Whatever you love to do, you have most likely had to adapt to your new circumstances. Currently, Primary and Secondary schools have moved to remote learning (something we have had to adapt to for the past 10 months), with school remaining open to our vulnerable and key worker children.

We have had to deal with a rollercoaster of emotions. Having to come to terms with our new ‘reality’ and the difficulties associated with it. Some of us, more so than others. Whether we have been ‘affected’ or not, we all have stories that make us feel sad, worried and perhaps at times anxious. However, we have also had to adapt so quickly and transform our lives. Many parents have told me that they never thought they would be home-schooling their children. However, they have adapted and it brought me to think how important it is to have an environment in our homes where we can feel calm, focused and motivated. Our homes have become our offices, our gyms and our restaurants! Literally!

Here at Creative Minds Tutors, we believe that it is vital that all children continue with their learning daily and create a schedule that they can stick to each day. We are here to support you and to provide guidance where needed. Let’s be honest, things can be stressful for us right now but it is important to stay focused on our goals. Our children have worked so incredibly hard and we need to ensure that even though they are missing physically being in school, that they continue to learn at the highest standard possible for them. I have had the opportunity to speak with several clients about how their children have been getting on with studying from home. Some children have found it to be a positive experience and others have had difficulties with adjusting and motivating themselves to work independently.

This is where we come in! We are currently offering our ‘Home Learning Support Package’, these packages are a way for parents to support their children during these current circumstances and beyond. We have been running these packages since May 2020 and we have already seen phenomenal results.

These are just a few comments from our current clients:

‘I have appreciated Maria’s personal approach in her Home Learning Support Package as this has helped us support our child during this difficult time. He has really connected with her and looks forward to his lessons.’

‘I have found it very helpful because I can come to you to help teach the areas that I have not been able to due to my work commitments, especially during lockdown.’

 ‘I couldn’t have survived home schooling in both lockdowns without Maria’s professional and fun Home Learning Support Package! Every lesson has been tailored to be parallel to Isabella’s year group learning and her confidence is continuing to grow, even through these uncertain times.’

These are just a few comments from our current students:

The lessons help me to expand my knowledge in areas that I don’t understand. I enjoy my lessons with Maria (Reyan, Year 5)

The lessons with Maria have boosted my confidence and I am now able to tackle even the most challenging questions. She has taught me not to fear getting things wrong and in fact encourages me to make as many mistakes as possible! After all, that is how I will learn to get things right! (Sam, Year 3)

Here are some of our favourite free online resources (for children aged 5-11):

https://library.thenational.academy/spend-time-with-tracy-beaker-and-jacqueline-wilson/ 

https://wordsforlife.org.uk/virtual-school-library/

https://ed.ted.com/

https://www.nhm.ac.uk/take-part/try-this-at-home.html

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize

https://www.tate.org.uk/kids

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/education/classroom-resources/

https://www.booktrust.org.uk/

We are all aware about the importance of keeping up a very high standard of education during this time. However, just as important is our mental health and wellbeing. Taking the time to look after ourselves and being very aware of not spending all of our day in front of a computer screen! Something as simple as standing up every 15 minutes! Yes, it seems simple but if I’m not mindful, I could be sitting down for a full hour and not have even realised! Set a timer if it helps! Going for walks throughout the day. Being in nature is such a mood booster. I am incredibly lucky to have a beautiful park near my home. I have never visited it so much in my life! I have personally found that I have become a lot more grateful for all of the wonderful things in my life. Practising gratitude daily is so important. I have a gratitude journal, which is a simple notebook and I write down all of the things that I am grateful for. It could be as simple as a wonderful lesson with a student, or a long walk, a beautiful sunny day or a hot bath with my favourite candles! Speaking to our friends is also very important. Although we cannot see many people at the moment we can all take some time out of our days to call a friend and see how they are. You never know, you might make their day! Schedule a Zoom call with family. We are social beings and we all need that interaction with others.

Here are some fantastic apps or websites for your mental wellbeing:

Insight timer

Head space

The 5 minute journal

Calm

Sleep meditations for kids

Youtube has thousands of videos that you can search for Positive Affirmations

I will create another blog to discuss mental wellbeing in more detail! These are just a few of my own personal suggestions. I personally use insight timer and head space daily and highly recommend both other them.

One final thing!

Creating the ideal study environment!

This is of course personal to each individual child.

1.     Create your space for studying

Whether this is in your bedroom or in the sitting room, make sure that it is your space. Be organised and have all of the resources and books that you need. If possible, put some calm music on to help you to concentrate. I personally always work to the sounds of nature (my current favourite is rainfall or thunder therapy. I use insight timer for these) If it is noisier than usual in your home, put headphones on. Try not to use other electronic devices (phones!). As we are all spending so much of our time in front of the screen, we certainly need to try to limit our exposure to other screens!

2.   Have a daily routine

We all need boundaries. Set a time for yourself to start and to finish. There have been times where I have caught myself still working at the computer at 9pm! If I don’t give myself a limit, I could work all night long! Not a good idea! Set a time to really focus on each subject. But do take breaks! Stand up, walk around, do some jumping jacks! Whatever you like! But MOVE! Go outside and breathe in some fresh air. If it helps you, write your routine down and try to stick to it!

3.   ‘Socialise’

Take time to talk to your family. Spend time together having lunch even if it is only for 10 minutes. Talk about how your day has been and if there is anything that you have found challenging. Try not to keep things in. Remember this is a challenging time for all of us, but if we can express our feelings and emotions it will be a lot healthier than keeping it all in.

One final point, please be kind to yourself. These are new times for us all. We may have great days and we may have some more challenging days. I am grateful to work with such positive and motivated students but even they have their tricky days. We all do. We are all human and doing the best that we can. So speak kindly to yourselves and take good care. Do something wonderful each and every day, even if it’s just taking the time to sit and read your book or stretch or do your favourite exercise. Find times in the day to relax and be mindful of your own wellbeing.

If you would like further information about anything that I have discussed in this blog or about our Home Learning Support Packages, please don’t hesitate to contact us at:

office@creativemindstutors.com

www.creativemindstutors.com                                 

How Story Writing is Assessed in the 7+ Entrance Examination

7 plus story writing always a ‘hot’ topic for discussion! I have had countless conversations with many parents of students that I have taught with regards to story writing.

These are a few of the most common questions about 7 plus story writing I have heard:

Is it possible for a 6 year old to write an interesting, descriptive and structured story?

Can my 6 year old write a full story in 20-30 minutes?

Will my child need to include paragraphs?

Will my child need to have correct spelling and punctuation?

The answer to all of these questions is ‘Yes!’

I have been supporting children with story writing for over 10 years. It is very important to remember that each child will have different views and feelings when it comes to story writing.

I have supported children who absolutely love story writing and can’t get enough of it. I have also supported children who have told me that they never want to write a story ever again! Therefore it is very important that each child is dealt with in a unique way. It is important to find the correct balance and to never ever overwhelm a child. The process has to be fun. It has to be done in a way that will encourage the child to love writing in the long term.

A 6 year old can absolutely write a story in 20-30 minutes.

With plenty of practice of course.

Story writing is not something that can be forced on a child. The best stories I have read from my 7+ students are stories that are creative and imaginative and totally unique to the little author writing them! Yes, we can teach great adjectives and adverbs but ultimately it all comes down to the imagination of the child writing the story.

How do you ‘teach’ a child to become imaginative?

Read, read and read some more. Read from a variety of genres and get those creative juices flowing. As your child reads, encourage them to write down beautifully descriptive sentences from the books that they read. This sounds simple, however this is something that I rarely see children doing as they read. It is a skill that can be mastered, however. It needs to become a habit.

Create a bank of descriptive sentences that your child can dip into when writing their own stories.

You can organise your ‘Creative Book’ very simply.

Separate the book or folder the following way:

1.       Wonderful adjectives

2.       Superb adverbs

3.       Excellent verbs

4.       Beautiful sentences

5.       Similes

6.       Personification

7.       Speech punctuation

As your child reads, remind them to be mindful of these sections. You can focus on one or two sections at a time. After several weeks, you will have created an extremely valuable resource that will support your child with their story writing.

What is the expectation of story writing for the 7+ entrance examination?

Each school will have their own expectations.

This is what I focus on when teaching story writing:

1.       Three clear paragraphs (beginning, middle and ending)

2.       Spellings – correct spellings used. Your child needs to know the 100 and 200 high frequency words and they will be expected to know spellings up to a year 4 standard.

3.       Punctuation – Correct use of full stops and commas as well as a capital letter at the beginning of a sentence. Correct speech punctuation when using inverted commas.

4.       Adjectives – Using a variety of adjectives to describe.

5.       Verbs – Using verbs for effect

6.       Sentence openers – Varying sentence openers for effect.

7.       Similes – using a simile or two (if it is effective)

8.       Personification – to add that wow factor!

This may seem overwhelming to many parents. But you will be surprised at how much the children absolutely adore writing stories.

Take your time with this and above all, make it fun!

Happy Creative Story Writing Everyone!

If you are interested in private tuition to prepare your child for the 7 plus entrance exam, please contact us.

Strategies for teaching comprehension (KS1/Lower KS2)

Strategies for teaching comprehension (KS1/Lower KS2)

Many parents have come to me and asked how they can better support their children with comprehension, so I thought it would be helpful to write a blog about it!

What is comprehension?

Comprehension is the understanding and interpretation of what is read.

To be able to accurately understand written material, children need to be able to:

(1) Decode what they read (apply their knowledge of letter-sound relationships, including knowledge of letter patterns, to correctly pronounce written words)

(2) Make connections between what they read and what they already know.

(3) Think deeply about what they have read.

Why is comprehension important?

It is important because it shows our understanding of what we read. It shows our ability to make inferences and predictions. If we lack comprehension skills, it means that we won’t be able to truly understand what we have read.

When should I start teaching comprehension?

Of course the younger, the better. However, you can start at any time. With so much online material and so many fantastic comprehension books to purchase, there are many opportunities to support your child with their learning of comprehension.

The most important thing to remember, is that in order to gain mastery in any comprehension activity, your child needs to become an avid reader. They need to read for pleasure and look forward to reading. Encourage them to choose books that they love - that will keep them engaged and interested.

Steps to teach comprehension whilst reading with your child:

1.      Encourage your child to read to you out loud. I have found that older children become more reluctant to read out loud and prefer to read on their own. Encouraging them to read out loud will allow you to see if they are making any errors with their reading and also check that they have understood what they have read. Too often children tell me that they have finished reading but when I ask them to tell me what the book was about, they are only able to tell me one or two points. Most children that I teach love to read out loud because they love to be listened to. If they make mistakes or don’t understand, that is never a problem. Take the time to truly study the sentences and understand the meaning being portrayed within them.

2.      When they come across a new or unfamiliar words, ask them to stop. Make a note of this in a glossary (you can make it yourself by getting a blank notebook and writing A-Z or you can purchase one) By doing this, you will be increasing their vocabulary. Dip into the glossary daily and ask your child if they remember the meaning of a certain word. Can they put it into a sentence? If they don’t remember, practice it with them. Keep revisiting the word until your child is confident with the meaning.

3.      Look up the meaning of the word in the dictionary.

4.      Write down the meaning and discuss (Many children skip words if they are unsure of them. Try to avoid this as much as possible as it can become a habit)

5.      Ask your child questions about the book that they are reading.

6.      Ask your child to make predictions.

7.      Ask your child to explain the meaning of certain sentences to you.

8.      Encourage your child to ask you questions too and model how to answer the question correctly.

The more your child reads and is exposed to a variety of different vocabulary, the better that they will become at comprehension.

The main problem that I see is that if there is even just one word within a sentence that a child is unsure of, it could completely throw them in the understanding of that particular sentence. This will then make it very difficult to answer a question relating to that particular sentence.

There will inevitably always be words that a child will not know. As long as they are able to try and guess at the meaning of the word either through the context of the sentence or through trying to interpret the meaning of the word- this is the skill that we must teach. Often, children will say to me – ‘I just do not know!’ All I have to do is ask them to re-read the sentence and have a guess at the meaning of the word and 90% of the time they will be able to.

Ultimately, the more you expose your child to high quality vocabulary, the more they will be able to try and infer meaning.

Top tips!

Read daily

Build a love of reading

Write new words in a glossary with their meaning

Answer comprehension questions daily – it’s all about practice!

Make it fun!

Encourage children to ask you questions

Never skip words that they are unsure of

Be an inquisitive learner!

Read every day! Start at 10 pages a day as a very minimum.

If you have any questions about teaching early comprehension, please comment below and I will get back to you.

Happy Creative Comprehension Teaching!

How to read phonetically in 6 steps!

Teaching children aged 2-3

Step 1:

In the beginning and the earliest stages, teach letter sounds from a-z (in order)

Use lower case letters (you can also show upper case letters but when the children do begin to read, they will mostly be exposed to lowercase letters)

Go through the letter sounds from a-z.

Note - In the English alphabet we have 44 sounds.

Step 2:

Go through the alphabet out of order (sounds)

Step 3

Move onto blending.

Create a board with sounds or flashcards if your child is easily distracted by too many things on one board.

Elongate the sounds to help your child to blend effectively.

Step 4

Use a phonics primer to help to teach your child to read.

See ‘The National Right to Read Foundation’.

Step 5

Choose appropriate books for beginner readers.

Step 6

Teach the sight words.

If words cannot be decoded phonetically then we can have the child memorise by sight.

The key is to do small amount each day. 1-2 minutes each day to start off with. Have fun with this. This should be an enjoyable experience for your child. When they get tired or distracted, that’s absolutely fine. Come back to it at another time or another day.

Happy Creative Reading Everyone!

The joys of reading!

There are always opportunities to read.

Curiosity

Always learning!