Mumsnet users share their tips for making learning fun for their children with VTech

[LucyBMumsnet]

This sponsored discussion is now closed. Thank you to everyone who shared their tips below

Helping your child learn about the world and everything in it is not always an easy task - from capturing their attention for more than 2 minutes, to finding the best way for them to remember the letters in their name, sometimes we parents have to come up with inventive ways to help our children learn. That’s why VTech’s Touch and Learn activity desk teaches children about letters, phonics, numbers, body parts, animals, music, shapes, colours (and more!), so to celebrate learning being both educational and fun, they would like to hear your tips on making learning a fun and enjoyable activity for your children.

Here’s what VTech has to say: “VTech is a world leader in age-appropriate and developmental stage-based electronic learning products for children. As a pioneer in learning toys, VTech develops high-quality, innovative educational products that enrich children's development, such as the Touch & Learn Activity Desk. This four-in-one desk features a writing pad, desk, blackboard and art station! Desk includes an interactive desktop, stylus and 4 double-sided touch pages filled with engaging content including letters, numbers, music, colours and much more. It also transforms from a desk into an easel and blackboard with plenty of storage space for art supplies to encourage play and discovery. The interactive LED display teaches letter and number stroke order. Also includes fun toy phone and music player featuring over 20 songs. Enjoy hours of fun as you create, discover and learn!”

So we are asking you, what are your ways of making learning fun for your children? Perhaps you have invented an all too catchy song to help them learn different numbers or maybe you’ve set up an at home science experiment which has left your kitchen looking a little worse for wear? Has a day out to the zoo, aquarium or museum helped your child learn more about the world? What trick has been most successful at getting your child to learn something new?

No matter how you make learning fun for your children, share your tips on this thread and you’ll be entered into a prize draw where one Mumsnetter will win a £100 voucher for a store of their choice (from a list).

Thanks!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs

[alwaysataldi]

Practical learning in our house, growing cress (then eating it ), then outdoors this summer we had garden peas, (which we loved to see grow, flower, pick then eat - both hot and cold, and one more I can think of is our giant sunflowers - growing them indoors, then when strong enough outdoors, measured and watched grow and flower. We learned about nature, nutrition, growth and a life skill.

[cupofteaaa]

My DS is definitely an interactive learner. So it is mostly trips out. Aquariums, zoos, farms, trips to the woods etc help him learn new words and discover different animals and wildlife. Also use this to practice basic maths by asking how many blue fish etc. If the weather outside is dreadful, it's lots of singing, reading and playing to ensure he is still able to be interactive.

[sheilads105]

Pre-Covid we visited loads of museums. We particularly loved the hands-on places like the Science Museum in London. Even the V&A can be child friendly if you pick your items carefully (Tipu's Tiger!).

[HobNobAddict]

I have lots of posters in their bedrooms with words, times tables, trees, the royal family, and a shelves full of books we read together.

[PashleyB]

Lots of reading together - so both fiction and non fiction. My youngest in particular is a sponge for facts and picks up a lot just through reading together.

[BristolMum96]

Always learning through play and lots of messy but practical activities. My child learns best when immersed in a topic

[voyager50]

Teach them as they play or are out and about depending, on their age. You can tell them all sorts of facts about what they are doing whether it's teaching them the types of birds at a bird table or trees in a wood, the price of food in shops and adding it up, why the water in the pond has frozen, what ingredients go in a cake etc. They can learn without it being formal teaching and will probably retain a lot more.

[Annelisaz]

We have made a robot out of cardboard, we stuck some buttons on Robot and wrote under each Button different words like, on off. Walk stop. Speak. I then put robot on and it was amazing how quickly he was able to read each word.
We made a phone out of paper and with that he can remember sequence of numbers and we were practicing phoning the emergency service, i was so surprised when I realized that he thought the number for this was 911. I'm so glad he now knows it's 999.

[EvilHerbivore]

Not being afraid to say 'I don't know' when asked a question - it's given me loads of opportunities to learn things alongside my kids as we google it/get a library book/go ask someone else etc and shows them that learning is a lifelong process to be enjoyed

[isedcat]

My twins are still quite young but have a slight speech delay.
Repeating the same stories and songs has helped them pick up words through coping.
Using interactive toddler laptops has helped with letter and number recognition.
Distracting them with nursery rhyme videos on YouTube has also helped ( although this is just to help me finally get something done around the house)

[lolly2011]

We sing songs to help remember numbers and colours, we read stories regularly. We play board and number games, have scavenger hunts based on a theme. We try to visit lots of places and learning through play.

[Asuwere]

I think it's just about incorporating learning into play - speaking about colours while playing with cars, counting while pouring pretend tea etc.

[munchbunch12]

Lots of reading together, drawing and colouring in and making things from boxes and cardborad tubes. We also go for lots of walks and bike/scooter rides and look at the world around us and how things change with the seasons.

[StickChildNumberTwo]

Trying to incorporate learning into everyday life, whether it's the chat over dinner or looking at things when we're out and about. I try to pick up on the things that they're interested in and work from that.

[caravandreamer]

Old magazines are great fun to cut out the pictures + letters and learn how to spell the word or learn a fact about how it's made, where it comes from etc. We keep ours in boxes as they also come in handy when making homemade birthday cards too.

[MrsFrTedCrilly]

Very much believe in the learning through doing maxim in this house. Baking/cooking = maths, tech, science, literacy
I’ve got very inquisitive kids so I think all my days are spent answering questions... so many questions

[starlight36]

Variety is the best method. Use everything you have! Traditional books were popular on our house from a very early age and help to spark their imagination. Kids TV is brilliant these days - 'Numberjacks' was a huge hit. Electronic toys provide the necessary repetition fit facts to sink in. Every day life provides lots of hidden learning - recognising numbers on houses, reading street signs, playing I-Spy etc

[BellaVida]

From being babies, we’ve tried to expose our 4 DC to as many different environments and activities as possible. I think this is key for them to observe, listen, explore, ask questions and experiment for themselves. Children are naturally curious and ready to learn, so if we do this and support them as much as we can, they will engage with everything around them.

Ours had many VTech toys from baby sensory balls and walkers to laptops. They are great learning tools and amazingly robust! VTech is also the only brand we found where we could get bilingual learning toys. I have since passed all of these on to family and they are still going strong.

[wellingtonsandwaffles]

You don’t need to make learning fun for little ones, they love to learn, it’s innate. What you need to do is make teaching fun, if you want them to learn something specific. We focused on number games and identification during walks - and recently moved to letters - stole a good idea from Pinterest making “word” potions by compiling bottles of interesting mixture in the right order to recognise the letters and spell basic words. But mostly learning comes from lots and lots of reading (library is a must!) And talking!

[MumC2141]

Reading together, talking to them about things in every day life. Games involving writing as they got older.

[ErinSophia]

I read up on a new topic with my children everyday, sometimes they choose a topic sometimes I do. Then my children make up stories about the chosen topic.

[TheEndisCummings]

going to sites of historic significance has brought history to life for my young ones - and we talk about it for long afterwards. Learning together has been really important - for languages, even for science. And experiments at home are the best.

[mummyuk86]

I try to use a mixture of techniques to make learning fun for my son.
He loves singing and songs so i try to put everything into a catchy tune as he find it easier to remember.
Also, he does love a treat so setting him a challenge and telling him he'll get a treat if he completes it works too.

[Anj123]

When children can see that what they are learning is of practical use, that helps. My daughter is good with numbers because she’s interested in money!

[Sleepybumble]

We've tried to keep learning light and fun and flexible . Dd has just turned 5 and is starting to read. I encourage her to read daily but some days she's not bothered so I don't push it. She's coming on really well so it's working for her. Will have to rethink if her progress stops.