How to Help Your Child During a Scratch Junior Class

Scratch Junior is probably the course we offer with the youngest children as students. Children are typically around the ages of 5 and 7, and therefore have low computer user skills. They also may struggle with reading. This sometimes requires a parent or guardian to sit with the child during the lesson to help where needed.

Here are some ways in which we recommend you, as a parent or guardian can best help:

Children learn better when they are given clues as opposed to direct answers. This is because with clues, they tend to learn that there is a set pattern and method to problem solving. It also gives them a level of independence, helping them practice the act of solving problems on their own. Try to give your child some hints as to what they should do or what the answer to a particular question is.

It is estimated that 80% of children are visual learners. This means that they learn better through watching actions being carried out as opposed to listening to instructions. Try to explain the steps of what it is you are trying to teach them while simultaneously doing it. After checking that they have understood everything, you can proceed to allow them to try it out for themselves under your supervision or the supervision of the tutor. Scratch Junior is a very visual and interactive platform, so the need for this is emphasised.

Stanfrod professor, Carol Dweck, along with other Stanford professors, conducted research on how children learn from mistakes. The study followed hundreds of New York City 5th graders that were split into two groups, where one group was praised for their intelligence and the other praised for their effort. When the students were given an 8th grade test to work on, it was found that the students in the group who were praised for their effort worked hard even after making many mistakes, while the students who were praised for intelligence became discouraged due to seeing their mistakes as failure. The group where students were praised for their effort improved on their intelligence testing by 30% while the other group slumped by 20%.
This shows that encouraging children to try new things and make mistakes allows them to improve over time as they are then able to learn from their mistakes and more determined to find the correct solution to problems.

A study conducted in 2006 revealed that children often require more time to learn skills than their parents and teachers think. Every child has their own learning pace. Some children pick on concepts quickly, but as soon as they are required to apply that knowledge, they struggle. Meanwhile, other children take time to catch onto concepts but find it easy to apply their knowledge to problem solving. Being patient takes pressure off your child and gives them a safe learning environment. It also encourages them to ask questions when they do not understand, instead of saying that they understand when they really don’t.
At the end of the day, it is important to identify a child’s pace as early as possible and teach them according to that pace.

Sometimes hints are given and children still struggle to answer correctly. We get it. If you do end up having to tell your child exactly what to do, make sure that they know exactly why they are doing what they are doing. You could even go as far as asking them to explain the process or action back to you in order to ensure that they fully understand. It is better to spend much time on one concept, no matter how simple, resulting in the child understanding than to rush through things and have the child not understand what they did.

This is mentioned with utmost sincerity. Sometimes the loving characteristic of parents causes them to take over the teaching process during the lesson. Itgenio has very capable, very experienced tutors on hand who follow lesson plans tailor-made to pave the best possible learning path for your child. Please try to flow with the tutor and seek to compliment their direction, not oppose it. It is also important to communicate with the tutor so that you, as a parent or guardian, can see where the child might need more attention. Remember, you, your child and the tutor are on the same team.

1. Take a breather, walk out of the room for a few moments to cool down and then come back.
2. Be sure to come to the lesson well rested.
3. Notify your child that they, you and the tutor should only speak one at a time.
4. Offer breaks for your child.
5. Try to be positive.
6. Put away all distractions in sight, for both you and the child.

Children can be a handful sometimes and it can be quite difficult to get them to follow instructions, even when it is the best thing for them. However, Scratch Junior classes can be really productive when done right and everybody plays their role well.

Hopefully this article gives good advice on how you can properly help your child during their Scratch Junior classes. If you have not enrolled your child in our Scratch Junior course, click on the link below and get a trial class completely free.