Parenting Hacks: Supporting Primary Schoolers

Kids are well and truly back at school for 2022 and because you are an awesome parent… you want to help and you want them to do as well as they can.

Well, we are here to make it all easier for you. We have the tasty recipes with the hidden educational vegies – so to speak. It’s your one stop shop parenting hack central.

We have compiled lots of hopefully helpful digital goodies like learning games, videos, and of course physical books you can borrow from our branches. Everything listed is free through your library membership.

I want to help my child’s brain… why not make learning fun so they don’t know they are learning? They want screen time? No worries, these are some guilt-free options!

Support your child: Reading.

In the early years of primary school, you desperately want to help your child learn to read by themselves but it is just as important to help them learn to love stories and reading – even if they aren’t working out all the words and reading themselves. Reading together, watching others read stories aloud, activities in reference a story, exploring the pictures, these are all really beneficial too.

Support your child… Coding.

Coding is and this demand will only grow. Coding is quickly becoming an essential skill, and a highly sought-after job skill, and it will only grow. Help prepare your kids to succeed in an increasingly digital world with basic coding.

Support your child… Languages

Most primary schools offer at least one language. When young brains are like sponges it is the best time for them to pick up a language. It is taken in much more quickly and easily than when they are adults! And yet many kids finish primary school, remembering little more than greetings, numbers, colours and My name is...

Why not give them a boost? Kids can watch stories in lots of different languages and narrated in English.

Educational Games

The best general parenting hack is of course making kids want to do/eat/watch etc the things that are actually good for them. Not every kid enjoys reading encyclopedias or watching documentaries so if they are going to play games, at least you know they are getting something out of playing these ones. Just remember not to push them too much or they won't want to do it, just to spite you, even if they like it!

Read Together

Are you looking for some books about starting school to read with your little one?

Here’s a list to explore…

• The Wild Guide to Starting School
• The Battle: starting school can be scary sometimes!
• Starting School
• Stuff to know when you start school
• This is how we get ready: for little kids going to big school
• This is how we make friends: for little kids going to big school
• Why do I have to… Go to school?
• A Boy's guide to school
• A Girl’s guide to school

Read: For Parents

Your child is starting school and that’s a huge step. Do you want some books full of tips and strategies for how to help them thrive, navigating the Australian school system and managing behavioural, dietry and health issues.

See here.

• School ready
• Is my child ready for school?
• The bonsai student : why modern parenting limits children's potential at school and practical strategies to turn it around
• 12 ways your child can get the best our of school
• Help your kids with study skills : an Australian step-by-step visual guide

Explaining Covid to Kids

Some books aged at primary aged kids to help explain some of the science. 

• Pandemic
• Staying connected while social distancing
• The COVID-19 virus
• COVID-19
• Heroes of COVID-19
• Pandemic planet