Tips for parents

As a psychologist and counsellor, I have been talking to parents about concerns they have about
their children during the lockdown and online classes. Here are a few takeaways and tips on Making
Online classes a successful experience for your children.
#parenting, #online classes, #counselling, #child psychology

Just like adults, children have been making a lot of adjustments in the last two months and online
learning is another huge adjustment they have been asked to make.

While all children love being in front of the screen it was mostly for fun and entertainment.
However, sitting in front for hours in a more organised classroom situation is not every child’s cup of
tea.
Each child has a different style of learning. (and parents can make this a successful experience for
their children by keeping the three C’s in mind. Communicate, Connect and Care).

Teachers so far have been doing their best to adjust to this new medium and parent support will be
valuable.

Here are a few tips for you to ensure that your child and teacher have the best online experience.

Communicate:
1. Talk to your children and explain to them the importance of following the online rules set by
the schools. Rules are made to make online learning safe and easy for the children. For example,
being on mute and not chatting with friends while class is in progress is something that will help
children concentrate and focus. Some children are easily distracted and explaining to them why
certain rules have been set will help them understand and follow the rules without defiance. This
will increase focus and concentration as well as set the mood for online learning.

Connect:
2. Connect with your child – understand your child’s needs and personality. Some children like
studying from home, however, there are a few who totally detest online learning.
Understand what type of a learner your child is.

a) Sitting in the cozy surrounding of a room, with the AC on, could probably make the child sleepy,
rather than focus on what the teacher is saying. Then the child may need a more open environment.
Maybe in the middle of the drawing room where the classroom is projected on the TV and a parent
is around to make sure that the child is not dozing off.

b) Or maybe the child is someone who is more comfortable and alert sitting in his own cozy room
without the distractions of a physical classroom and is able to focus better.

c) Another child may need to keep switching places after every subject, from sitting at a table to
sitting on the floor, which ever they feel more comfortable with, or just to get rid of the monotony.
For example, my seven year old daughter keeps switching from sitting at a table in the same room
to sitting on the floor against the wall, as she gets uncomfortable with her position after a while,
since she is slowly outgrowing her writing table and chair. While she doesn’t fully want to give up on
it, she wants to keep switching to comfortable positions.

d) On the other hand, my eleven-year-old son who is a sports person and is used to a lot of
outdoor activities, gets bored quickly when asked to copy notes. He finishes his notes before the
other children and while waiting, in order to beat the boredom he does a few push-ups or exercises
in his chair. (of course without disturbing the other classmates).

So it is up to the parents, to understand the child’s needs and encourage the child, to do what is best
for them to make the experience a successful learning journey.

Care:
Whatever, a child’s learning needs may be, what all parents should keep in mind is to:
1. Make sure that the learning environment is clean and all distractions from the room and the
learning space have been removed.
2. Provide the child with ear or headphones if required. Especially, if the child is someone who
gets distracted easily, headphones will help in cutting the outside noise. However, headphones are
not recommended for very young children and the volume of the headphones should not be very
high.
3. During the break time insist that the child steps away from the laptop and takes a walk around
the room or area.
4. Do a few stretches or do some deep breathing exercises.
5. The child should be well hydrated and keep sipping water.
6. The child should also have a snack during the break if required.

7. As a parent if you see the child getting distracted and not focusing please do ask the child the
reason for the distraction and work on it. Distractions could be due to worry, fear, anger or any
other emotions which should be addressed.
8. Parents can sit with the children at the end of the day and discuss with them how their classes
for the day went, what went well and what did not.

In summary, connect, communicate and care in order to make the online experience a successful
one.