6.8 – Helping children to learn – a day in the life 2

Look at the following example that outlines a day in the life of a child. At the end, open your worksheet and write down five learning opportunities in each , and how the parent used them.

A day in the life of Danny

Danny is 15. He has a radio clock alarm in his bedroom that wakes the whole house up but not him. Martin, his Dad, bangs on his bedroom door and says that if he doesn’t get up quickly his younger sister will hog the bathroom.

Danny is slightly annoyed that the shower gel’s run out. It’s the stuff that makes girls magnetised to him (or so the TV advert says!) Martin explains that he didask Danny to pop to the supermarket yesterday but as he couldn’t detach himself from the games console controller there isn’t any shower gel. He suggests he could pick the list up and collect a few things on the way home from school.

The weather is now getting cold so Martin suggests that the children have porridge or a hot chocolate before they set off for school and says that he will get some extra milk delivered.

Danny has football training at lunch time and thankfully his Dad had remembered to scrape the mud off Danny’s boots and stuff them with paper so that they were dry. Martin reminds him that it’s a good idea to do it straight after school and that he won’t do it every time. He says training is more comfortable in the cold if your boots are clean and dry.

Before they all head off to school, (Martin is a learning mentor at the same school that the children attend) Danny asks his Dad to fix his bike later if possible. When they all meet at home later Martin asks Danny to put some baked potatoes in the oven if he wants a hand with his bike. He suggests that Danny changes from his uniform to an old tracksuit because he thinks that the bike fixing might get messy.

Martin shows Danny how to fix the bike, where he keeps the bike tools and suggests that Danny practices so that if his sister’s bike needs attention he can help her out.

After dinner Martin has to do some schoolwork so he asks Danny if he can keep an eye on his sister and check that she’s not struggling with her homework.

He helps his sister with his homework and finds that it feels good when his sister gives him a hug and says thanks (usually they bicker a lot – mostly about bathroom and computer time!). In fact, because they are getting on so well, Danny’s sister confides that she has been feeling bullied at school. Danny says that he thinks he should tell Dad and that he’ll walk in and out of the gates with her for a week or so if it helps. Danny remembers his boots, cleans them and asks his Dad if he can wash his football kit himself. Martin points out that if he puts red socks in with white tops he will end up with pink tops and helps Danny to sort the colours out. Before bed the family have a quick game of scrabble, Danny argues that innit is actually a word and has been put into the dictionary. Martin is not so sure.

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