Just because the school day is done, it doesn’t mean the learning journey has to end! Why not bring it home with you? Learning can be fun! And it’s even possible to inspire your children in the home, without them even really knowing they’re learning.
Here are a few of our favourite homemade learning games to help keep the brain active when outside of the classroom.
Shaping Up
Shape Matching: Simple, fun, and easy to make! Shape matching is an important part of a child’s learning process, try creating this fun shape matching game at home for your child’s learning journey. Want to shake it up? Add an extra challenge by including different colours and various shape sizes.
via, Alicia Egea Fernandez on Pinterest
Geometric Shapes: Is your child too old for that shapes game? Don’t worry, we have a shape-oriented game for them too! Geometric shapes can often be a challenge at first, help your little one get ahead with this project. Fold paper into 3 dimensional shapes, then help them appropriately name and label the shape.
Are they ready to learn on their own? Scholar’s Choice has geometric shape resources to help aide in your child’s independent learning journey.
Overhead Folding Geometric Shapes
Mathematical!
Lego Fractions: Let’s face it, math can be a challenge, but it doesn’t have to be boring! Learning fractions with Lego is a great way to keep your child engaged through this learning process.
via, Dovas at Bored Panda
Comparisons: Are fractions too advanced? Why not help your little one learn their comparisons through this fun Lego based “Greater-than Less-than” activity.
via, Elizabeth Hazelden onPinterest
Telling Time: Learning to tell time? Make it fun with leftover plastic Easter eggs. Draw a clock on the top of the egg with the hands pointing to a certain time, and then write the corresponding time on the bottom half. Separate the eggs, jumble them up, and let your child go to work on matching them up correctly!
via, Genia Connell at Scholastic
Home Convenient Store: Introduce some role play into your child’s learning journey with a pretend cash register or homemade convenient store! This not only helps shape and improve their math skills, it also helps teach children the value of money!
Teaching Cash Register by Learning Resources
Choice Words
Alphabet hunt: This is a fun word and letter association game to help aide with your child’s reading and spelling skills. All you need is the alphabet (you can use your alphabet magnets, tiles, foams letters, or print and cut out the alphabet yourself) and objects that start with each letter of the alphabet (i.e. letter Z = a toy or a picture of a Zebra; A = Apple.) We love this game because you can adjust the difficulty, depending on your child’s age and spelling level.
Have a child just generally learning their alphabet? Why not have them match up the capitol letter to the lower case?
Individual Making Words Letters
Pipe Cleaner Letters: Or numbers. This activity is great for both! Take a bunch of pipe cleaners and have your child twist and combine them to make letters, numbers, and even to spell out words.
Spelling with Lego: Oh yeah, Lego isn’t just great for building things, it’s also great for building up your child’s vocabulary. Take your child’s lego, stick some letter stickers to it and have them build up different words for you.
via, A Happy Mum
Hula Hoop Rhymes: Explain the basics of what a rhyming word is, then set hula hoops up on your lawn and hide paper plates with words on them around the yard (groups of these words should rhyme.) Then task your child with finding and grouping these words into rhyming families.
via, Houston Mothers Blog
Word Families: Too cold to go outside and play the above game? Well you’re in luck, you can take your rhyming lessons indoors with paint swatch sliders!
via, Testy Yet Trying
Mad Science
Oobleck: Is it a liquid or solid? Who cares! It’s a super fun, safe, and non-toxic way to introduce your child to the amazing world of measuring and science. Corn starch + water = a good time. Why not add a little food dye for a colourful twist to this classic.
via, Babble Dabble Do
Geodes: Geodes are beautiful to look at, but not exactly easy to find… so why not make your own? You can either make these with a simple kit or use household items and recyclables to help with this experiment. This is another great science experiment to help your child learn math, measuring, geology, and patience!
Many of these games are hands on, which is a great tool to help with your child’s memory retention while learning. Not looking forward to crafting these games alone? Get the little ones involved as well! Crafting is just another great way to help them learn and get excited for the games ahead!
