School-age play and learning: in a nutshell

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By the time he is seven or eight, your child will have formed special friendships with one or two other children, usually of the same sex. Playing games with others helps children to learn about rules, fair play, right and wrong. There is often a lot of talk between children about what is fair.

Group games

Group games offer a way to safely unload angry feelings. He can kick a ball (instead of a person) and use up all that energy by playing hard.

Group games help your child learn about self-control and getting on with others. If you just do what you like, when you like it, you are not likely to win or be liked by others. Games that children can play alone (computer games, golf, solitaire) allow them to practise managing their feelings.

Books for school-age children

With new hobbies and interests, your child might start to devour books and magazines on his special subject, whether it’s motorbikes, horses or bugs.

School children like books that help them explore their feelings and life experiences (loneliness, friendship, growth). They also like to stretch their imagination with magical stories and illustrations.

• By ages 7-9, most children can read to themselves. Buy or borrow some short, illustrated books that he can read without your help.
• Keep reading aloud to your child and share a reading time together.
• Visit the library and bookshops. It may even be time for your child to get his own library card!
• If your child is a reluctant reader, look for books on topics that interest him. If he loves jokes, buy him a suitable joke book to read aloud to you. Try introducing comics, kids’ magazines and novelty books.
• Give books as gifts.
• Listen to recorded stories.

School-age games

Here are some games for after-school fun:

• threading beads and string
• making swirly water patterns with food colouring and an eye-dropper
• dancing to a favourite CD
• interactive computer games and educational CD-ROMs
• jigsaw puzzles
• learning a musical instrument
• planting and tending his own carrot patch
• collecting cards or stamps
• science experiments (under supervision)
• helping to prepare dinner or make biscuits
• camping in the backyard
• organised sports with a local team
• trips with a friend to the local playground (research shows that the more a child plays outdoors, the more active he is likely to be)
• painting and making prints with sponges, toothbrushes and potatoes
• join-the-dots puzzles
• Simple card games or board games
• role-playing teacher and pupil with you. This game can help him deal with his feelings about school. It can also give you clues to what he thinks of school.

Television: how much and how often?

Current research shows that school-age children watch over 24 hours of TV every week. That’s over three and a half hours a day. The National Physical Activity Guidelines (2004) recommend children aged 5-18 have no more than two hours of screen time a day, and that includes computers and video games as well.

There’s no doubt that watching TV can have educational benefits but only if your child watches educational programs. Research shows that children who watch a lot of entertainment TV, such as cartoons, spend less time playing, exercising and reading – activities which help them grow and develop.

The only way to control television watching is to get actively involved. Choose carefully what your child watches and be on hand to explain what is happening (particularly the difference between fantasy and reality). Make some clear rules about TV watching (like no TV in the morning) and stick to them.

While you are monitoring your child’s viewing, it is better not to have a TV in his room. If you confine the TV to the family room, you always know what he is watching.

If your child uses the internet at home, read our tips on internet safety.

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  Newsletter snippet: School-age play and learning: in a nutshell
  

  
  By Raising Children Network

  Playing games together helps school-age children learn about fair play, self-control, right and wrong, and getting on with others. It encourages and enhances your child’s development.
  
  After a day at school, though, playtime is really just about having fun! Although TV can help your child rest and relax, current recommendations are to limit TV and computer time to one hour a day.
  
  Ideas for after-school fun

  • Threading beads
  • Painting or making prints
  • Dancing to music
  • Jigsaw puzzles
  • Card games
  • Board games
  • Learning a musical instrument
  • Reading illustrated books
  • Reading magazines on a favourite subject
  • Visiting the library
  • Gardening
  • Stamp collecting
  • Helping with dinner
  • Camping in the backyard
  • Playing an organised sport with a local team
  • Visiting the local playground

  This article is an extract only. For more information, visit  raisingchildren.net.au/play__learning/school_age_play_learning.html.

  Sourced from the Raising Children Network's comprehensive and quality-assured Australian parenting website www.raisingchildren.net.au.