Starting school is a big milestone in a child’s life – not to mention a parent/carer’s too! Here are eight engaging stories and picture books about starting school to share with your child, to gently prepare them for their first day.
If, like us, finding the enthusiasm to keep going with home learning is tricky, here are a few ideas for making it over the finish line.
Lots of schoolwork is being set online at the moment. Here is one example from education expert James Clements of teaching maths skills without a screen.
Louise Pennington shows us her top five maths games, including ‘Bunny rabbit ears’ and ‘What’s in the bag?’, to help your child practise their number facts.
It can be hard making the jump from counting numbers to calculating. Sheila O’Reilly shares activities to introduce your child to addition and subtraction.
Education expert James Clements talks about how children who are already confident readers can get the most out of their reading.
Early Years teacher and mother Sheila O’Reilly shows us how to use Numicon shapes to help your child learn to count and order numbers.
Early Years teacher and mother Sheila O’Reilly shows us how the 1st Steps with Numicon at Home kit can support your child’s early maths development.
Maths expert Andrew Jeffrey shares five easy-to-implement strategies that can make a positive difference to our children’s maths learning at home.
Education expert James Clements talks about the lessons we can learn from teachers about helping your child to learn at home.
Education expert James Clements runs through everything you need to keep your child’s reading skills developing during the school lockdown.
Over the coming weeks, we are bringing you exciting new challenges, drawalongs and storytimes direct from the very best authors and illustrators. Find out more.
Education expert James Clements shares his ideas for keeping the children busy – in a constructive way – when you need to be getting on with something.
Education expert and writer James Clements talks about the importance of reading to your child to boost their educational success in all sorts of ways.
Education expert and writer James Clements explains what your child would be learning at school, and how we can use (or not use) the curriculum at home.
Education expert and writer James Clements suggests 6 practical things you get get ready over the weekend for next week’s learning at home.
Education expert and writer James Clements offers up 4 different approaches to structuring your child’s day learning at home.
Educational expert and writer James Clements gives his 3 top tips of how to get started with teaching your child at home.
Make this year’s celebration of books and reading extra special with our no-sew World Book Day costume ideas, inlcluding Winnie the Witch and Isadora Moon.
Building confidence in maths early on will pay back many times over. Get tips for developing your child’s mental arithmetic skills.
Find out what sort of books to expect to come home in your child’s book bag, and get top tips on how best to support your child.
Headteacher Tracey Smith shares her ideas for fun and easy games you can play to build your child’s vocabulary and boost their confidence with words.
Flummoxed by fractions? Dismayed by decimals? Perplexed by percentages? Get tips for exploring these tricky concepts at home.
John Dougherty shares his top picks for books to encourage and inspire your son to read.
There are lots of great reasons to share factual books with your child. Here are our top four tips for getting the most out of reading non-fiction.
Derry Richardson talks about combating maths anxiety and becoming #PositiveAboutNumbers, with helpful practical tips for parents.
A recent report highlights the link between children’s early language skills and their life chances. We look at simple everyday activities to boost your child’s communication, language and reading skills.
Wendy Cooling MBE has selected her favourite illustrated books to help you introduce your child to the wonders of stories and storytelling.
Science writer Isabel Thomas shares her top five tips for cultivating maths skills in the garden, no matter how big or small your green space and green fingers.
Fiona Lazenby tells us her four top tips for learning about volume, area and capacity at home, and having messy fun in the process!
Dictionaries are great for developing your child’s vocabulary, but not just any will do. Publisher Sam Armstrong explains how Oxford Children’s Dictionaries can support your child.
A rich vocabulary allows a child to enjoy their reading, to express themselves and to learn about the world. James Clements offers tips on how to help your child’s vocabulary develop.
Sharing a book at bedtime helps develop your child’s vocabulary, gets them used to the idea of regular reading, and gives you both a great opportunity to bond. Children’s author Cerrie Burnell gives us her top tips for getting the most out of bedtime reading.
Children’s librarian Greta Paterson shares her 5 top tips for choosing books for 3–7 year olds.
Harriet Muncaster gives her top tips on how to write a story, from developing the characters to designing the plot.
Discover how to help your child get a good night’s sleep with these tips inspired by our new book for toddlers, Goodnight, Sleep Tight.
Education expert James Clements gives his advice on how to choose the right school for your child.
Science and engineering provide fantastic career opportunities, but science is not just for scientists – it’s a huge part of everyday life. A good grounding in science will help every child to navigate their world and make good decisions. Isabel Thomas recommends books for ages 3–11 to inspire your young scientist.
Oxford University Press surveyed over 1,300 teachers who reported that the word gap is not only affecting children’s achievement at school but also that it can have a damaging impact on self-esteem and children’s ability to make friends. Find out what you can do to encourage language development at home.
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Subtraction is a key concept in the primary maths curriculum. Here are some easy activities you can try at home to build your child’s skills and confidence.
Matty Long, author of Super Magic Happy Forest, chooses his favourite fantasy picture books for children under five years old.
Cooking with your child makes for a fun opportunity to talk about maths together. Author Isabel Thomas shares her tips for using maths while cooking.
An important factor in boys’ success at school is what they learn at home. Here are 6 simple ways you can help your child do well in reading and writing.
Isabel Thomas shares her fun, simple ways to explore maths and problem-solving while you’re out and about with the family.
Educational publishing expert Andrea Quincey explains why reading schemes are important, and what the different colours, bands and levels actually mean.
Isabel Thomas explains how making reading dens with your child can turn reading a book into a special shared adventure with these simple ideas.
Frustrated by single-word answers from your child about the first few weeks at school? Get the conversation started with our Back to school BINGO card.
Find the right dictionary for your child with these four useful tips.
Isabel Thomas suggests simple games to keep your child occupied on long car journeys – and to squeeze in a bit of learning on the way!
Books to inspire, encourage, or just reassure your daughter, selected by the award-winning children’s author Joanna Nadin.
Guest blogger and primary school librarian Clare Turner gives her top five reasons why you should visit the library with your child.
Here are education expert James Clements’ favourite ways to teach your child on the sly, supporting their learning while having fun!
There are so many easy things you can do to help support your child’s phonics learning. Here are a few ideas from phonics expert Laura Sharp.
Education expert Laura Sharp breaks down what phonics is, how phonics is taught in schools, and why phonics is important and useful.
Early reading specialist Emily Guille-Marrett talks about how oral storytelling can lay the foundations for literacy skills – as well as being great fun.
Copyright Oxford University Press 2020
