Practise handwriting by writing a thank you letter to someone who has helped you during lockdown – like a teacher, a family member, or a healthcare worker.
Writing a thank you letter
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Blog posts for: Age 9-10
Five ways to improve maths home-learning
Maths expert Andrew Jeffrey shares five easy-to-implement strategies that can make a positive difference to our children’s maths learning at home.
Not your typical books for boys
An alternative list of recommended books for boys. Perfect for boys who are looking to read about something other than football or jokes about bottoms!
Teaching maths at home
Mathemagician Andrew Jeffrey suggests ways you can support your child’s maths development at home without needing to be an expert.
Money, money, money
Money isn’t everything, but being ‘good with money’ is undoubtedly a useful life skill. Read Fiona Lazenby’s top tips for practising using money with your child.
Maths is everywhere!
Maths expert Louise Pennington shares her advice for developing your child’s maths skills during school closures by exploring maths in the real world.
Learning at home: What can we learn from teachers?
Education expert James Clements talks about the lessons we can learn from teachers about helping your child to learn at home.
Learning at home: Learning to read
Education expert James Clements runs through everything you need to keep your child’s reading skills developing during the school lockdown.
Author videos: Storytelling, draw-alongs, and challenges
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.
Learning at home: Buying yourself some time
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.
Learning at home: How to prioritise sharing a book
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.
Learning at home: What would they be learning at school?
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.
Learning at home: Things to get ready for next week
Education expert and writer James Clements suggests 6 practical things you get get ready over the weekend for next week’s learning at home.
Learning at home: Organising the day
Education expert and writer James Clements offers up 4 different approaches to structuring your child’s day learning at home.
Learning at home: Making a start
Educational expert and writer James Clements gives his 3 top tips of how to get started with teaching your child at home.
Inspire the author in your child with the BBC 500 Words Competition 2020!
Oxford Dictionaries for Children has teamed up with BBC Radio 2’s 500 Words – the nationwide competition to find the most talented young writers in the UK!
How to help your child with mental arithmetic
Building confidence in maths early on will pay back many times over. Get tips for developing your child’s mental arithmetic skills.
Building a strong vocabulary: How to help at home
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.
Fractions, decimals and percentages
Flummoxed by fractions? Dismayed by decimals? Perplexed by percentages? Get tips for exploring these tricky concepts at home.
Great books to get boys reading
John Dougherty shares his top picks for books to encourage and inspire your son to read.
11+ and entrance exams explained
11+ tutor and writer Michellejoy Hughes explains what the exam involves, how marking works, and what you can do to help your child prepare.
Carry on reading aloud: the benefits of sharing books with older children
Few things are more important than reading aloud to our children. James Clements gives his advice on how to keep your child reading aloud, even after they are reading independently.
How a dictionary and thesaurus can help your child discover the world of words
Find out how using dictionaries and thesauruses can expand your child’s vocabulary and help them enjoy learning.
What do the KS2 SATs scores mean?
Education expert James Clements explains what the KS2 SATs are, how scaled scores work, and what you can expect to hear from your child’s school.
Developing your child’s confidence with martial arts
Mary Stevens discusses how martial arts can help children develop their confidence, their resilience and their self-control, and tells us what inspired her new Warrior Monkeys series.
2019 Oxford Children’s Word of the Year: Brexit
Brexit is the 2019 Oxford Children’s Word of the Year. Find out about children’s evolving use of language from analysis of stories from BBC 500 Words 2019.
Overcoming maths anxiety and being #PositiveAboutNumbers
Derry Richardson talks about combating maths anxiety and becoming #PositiveAboutNumbers, with helpful practical tips for parents.
How gardening can cultivate your child’s maths skills
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.
A case for non-fiction:
five reasons to read non-fiction with your child
Education expert James Clements outlines five benefits of reading non-fiction, and gives us his top non-fiction reads for ages 5–11.
Get messy with measuring
Fiona Lazenby tells us her four top tips for learning about volume, area and capacity at home, and having messy fun in the process!
How to edit your 500 Words story
Finished a first draft of your short story and not sure what to do next? Read Christopher Edge’s top tips for polishing your story to perfection.
How to write your 500 Words story
So you’ve got your idea, and you’ve planned the plot. Now comes the hardest (but most rewarding) part – actually writing your story. Here are Christopher Edge’s top tips on how to get started.
Why does your child need a dictionary?
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.
How to plan your 500 Words story
Author Christopher Edge shares his top tips on for planning a top-tier tale for the BBC 500 Words short story competition.
Story sparks: find inspiration for your short story
When you look down at a blank piece of paper, inspiration can seem a long way away. Here are Christopher Edge’s top tips for coming up with story ideas.
Stories from the road less travelled – children’s books that celebrate diversity
Every child deserves to see lives like their own represented in powerful stories. Cerrie Burnell shares her favourite children’s books that celebrate diversity.
How to choose a book for ages 7–11
Literacy adviser and ex-librarian Beverley Humphrey offers her expert advice on how you can help choose the right book for your 7–11 year old.
Harriet Muncaster’s creative writing challenge
Harriet Muncaster gives her top tips on how to write a story, from developing the characters to designing the plot.
Spooky reads for 9+ year olds
Embrace Halloween with our recommended spooky reads for 9–11 year olds, including Flood and Fang, The Dark is Rising and Uncle Montague’s Tales of Terror.
Non-verbal reasoning
Parents with children in Year 6 will probably hear about non-verbal reasoning a lot. But what exactly is non-verbal reasoning?
Coding for children: problem-solving, precision, and going unplugged
Guest blogger Claire Lotriet discusses the benefits of encouraging children to code, and explains the place of computing in the curriculum.
2018 Oxford Children’s Word of the Year: Plastic
Plastic has been revealed as the Children’s Word of the Year by Oxford University Press for the BBC 500 Words Competition. British children have once again shown themselves to be fabulously inventive, funny and socially astute.
Books to inspire young scientists
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.
Countdown to the KS2 SATs: week four
James Clements offers some last-minute advice for the KS2 SATs, as well as tips on how you can best support your child during exam week and beyond.
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Countdown to the KS2 SATs: week three
James Clements takes us through how you can help make your child’s KS2 SATs revision fun (yes, really).
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Countdown to the KS2 SATs: week two
Advice from James Clements on how your child can best prepare for KS2 SATs, including lots of revision tips and ideas.
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The word gap: How to build your child’s vocabulary at home
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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Picture books for older readers
Who says we have to leave picture books behind in KS1? These wonderful books use spellbinding illustrations to introduce children to big ideas. Includes FArTHER and The Man Who Walked Between Towers.
How to write your best story ever!
Christopher Edge, author of ‘How to Write your Best Story Ever!’, shares his top 10 tips to help your child write amazing stories.
Tom McLaughlin’s top 10 hilarious books
Children’s author Tom McLaughlin picks his 10 favourite funny books for children and teenagers, from classic stories to non-fiction to comic books.
Ben Davis’ top 10 funny books
Children’s author Ben Davis chooses his top 10 favourite funny books for children and teenagers, from old classics to brand new series.
6 top tips for finishing your 500 Words story
It’s easy to start a story, and it’s hard to finish one. Francesca Simon, author of the Horrid Henry series, shares her top tips for finishing a story.
How to find the perfect words for your story
Every writer wants to find the perfect words to tell their story. These activities will guide your child through four ways to make language sparkle in their creative writing, from creating striking similes to wielding unusual words.
4 fun ways to develop characters for a short story
Every story needs a star! These four fun activities will help any aspiring author dream up some page-turning protagonists.
4 top tips for writing great plots
Top tips for helping children develop great plots in their creative writing.
4 tips to inspire children’s creative writing
Coming up with a great story idea can be tricky, which is why we’ve gathered together four fun activities to inspire your child’s creative writing.
The gender gap: how to encourage boys to learn
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.
Writing non-fiction for fun
As writing for pleasure becomes less popular with children, Isabel Thomas emphasises the importance of writing non-fiction for fun.
Choosing a secondary school
Author and teacher Jill Carter runs through what to consider when choosing a secondary school.
How to make time for homework and home learning – tips for creating the right space and schedule in busy households
There are lots of simple things you can do to make doing homework a positive and rewarding experience for your child and to support their learning at home. Isabel Thomas gives us her tips for creating the right space and schedule in busy households.
Back to school BINGO
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.
Children’s dictionaries – how to find the right dictionary for your child
Find the right dictionary for your child with these four useful tips.
7 ways to practise multiplication skills at home
Bring maths to life with these seven easy activities you can try at home to build and improve your child’s understanding of multiplication.
‘Trump’ revealed as Children’s Word of the Year 2017
The team at Oxford Children’s Dictionaries have been poring through all 131,798 entries to identify the Children’s Word of the Year 2017 as ‘trump’.
How to build a girl – books to inspire, encourage, or just reassure your daughter
Books to inspire, encourage, or just reassure your daughter, selected by the award-winning children’s author Joanna Nadin.
Science for fun – six super science activities to try at home
Six super science activities to try at home from Isabel Thomas. Bake a solar system, design a marble run, and sculpt with sugar!
Your local library – a forgotten treasure trove
Guest blogger and primary school librarian Clare Turner gives her top five reasons why you should visit the library with your child.
SATs skills: Preparing your child for KS2 SATs
Everything you need to know to prepare your child for the key stage 2 SATs, including expert advice and example questions.
Why is animal fiction important?
Tom Moorhouse talks about the importance of animal fiction: in building empathy, introducing children to difficult topics, and much more.
Supporting spelling at home
Mark Twain once observed, ‘anyone who can only think of one way to spell a word lacks imagination’. The government disagrees, so here are our top spelling tips.
Five easy ways to explore fractions with your child
Here are five easy ways you can relate fractions to everyday life, including ideas for using food, fun activities, and a free ‘Fractions in School’ booklet.
World Book Day – Read the world!
Children’s author Ali Sparkes gives her top 8 suggestions on how to encourage reluctant or struggling readers this World Book Day.
Supporting your child to develop their reading comprehension skills
Some tips to support your child as they begin to understand the concept of a story and start improving their reading comprehension.
Times tables tips
Our times tables top tips will provide some useful advice, ideas, and free activities to help you support your child in learning their times tables.
Five creative ways to help with spelling homework
Looking for some fun spelling ideas? Look no further. These games will help your child to learn those spelling words and enjoy it in the process.
How to help your child do well at school
Being involved with your child’s education can make a huge difference to their success. Here are some helpful ideas for you to support your child’s learning.
Ideas to sneak learning into everyday activities
Here are education expert James Clements’ favourite ways to teach your child on the sly, supporting their learning while having fun!
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