Helping your Early Learner when they start Kumon

Enrolling your child as an Early Learner in the Kumon programmes is a wonderful way to give them a head start on their education journey. They’ll have the opportunity to develop essential learning skills sooner and will be able to make progress with more independence and confidence. While your Kumon Instructor will be helping your child take their first steps as a lifelong learner, there are ways that you too can support your child while they learn at home.

1.      Set up an appropriate workspace

Desk height is an important, though often overlooked, part of having an appropriate space to learn in. As many young children are still developing their vital pencil skills, keeping them sitting at the appropriate height can make a huge impact.

Younger children may need a slightly lower desk and chair, conversely older children might need to be seated slightly higher. If a child is seated at a desk at the correct height for them, they will be able to rest their arms comfortably on the table, with the heel of their palm in contact with the surface. If the table is too high, the child may adopt an incorrect and inefficient pencil grip, costing them precision and causing them discomfort in the long term.

See what you can to raise your child’s seating position to make sure that writing is comfortable, easy and helps train your child’s pencil control skills!

2.      Set a consistent ‘Kumon time’

Now that you have a comfortable workspace for your child to study in, make sure to also set an appropriate ‘Kumon time’ for when your child will complete their worksheets. It should be when your child is well-rested, not hungry, and will have enough time to complete the worksheets without being interrupted or distracted. This will help to build routine and get your child used to completing their worksheets, and it will also help to instil good study habits.

3.      Talk to your Instructor about the aim of each level

Each Kumon level serves a purpose, helping students master a specific topic and material. By understanding the focus and purpose of each level, you will be able to better motivate and direct your child accordingly. For example, some worksheets are designed specifically to develop handwriting, where pencil control may be a higher priority than recall, mental calculations and comprehension.

4.      Realise the importance of repetition

Repetition of the lower-level worksheets, especially early on in a student’s Kumon journey, serves several purposes. Exposure to familiar content mixed in with new work can reinforce a child’s focus and motivation. While they may find the new work hard, having it mixed in with material that they’re already familiar with reminds them of what they are capable of and encourages them to continue. If your child is assigned the same worksheets several days in a row, they will become more confident in completing these sheets, gaining full mastery over the material. They can then challenge themselves to work on their accuracy and speed of completion.

5.      Celebrate every win, no matter how small

Kumon study doesn’t just help children to improve their maths and English skills – it also improves the softer study skills that will help your child through life in general, not just academically. After one month of study, take a moment to consider what these changes have been. Can your child sit still and concentrate on a task for longer now? Are they able to complete their worksheets faster, and with more accuracy? Make sure to let your child know how proud of them you are for this – your genuine and well-timed praise is an important part of tapping into the potential of your child and helping them develop a lifelong love of learning.