The principal of Chrisidia Education Centre, Benin City, Edo, Adesuwa Aghayere, has urged parents to use the school holidays to identify their children’s learning needs and address challenges that could affect their academic progress.

Ms Aghayere advised in an interview on Monday in Benin. The education expert said that although holidays should allow children to rest and recreate, parents should also keep them engaged in simple learning activities to maintain their academic routine.

According to her, some children begin to lose their learning routine from about the second week of the holiday if they completely disengage from academic activities.

“From about the second week of the holiday, many children begin to lose their learning routine if parents do not deliberately keep them engaged,” she said.

Ms Aghayere said children in the same class did not necessarily learn at the same pace or retain information equally, noting that while some learned faster, others required more repetition and support.

She advised parents to study their children’s academic results, identify subjects in which they performed poorly, and determine why they struggled with them, rather than comparing them with other children.

The principal also urged parents to discuss the subjects their children disliked with them and find out whether the difficulty was related to the subject, the way it was taught, or their relationship with a particular teacher.

She advised parents to use the holiday to communicate with their children and, where necessary, contact their teachers or the school to understand the challenges and agree on ways to address them before resumption.

“Not all children are the same. They learn differently and at different paces. Some children should not stay away from learning for too long because they easily forget what they have learned and may struggle to catch up with their classmates when school resumes,” she said.

Ms Aghayere stressed the need for parents, children, and schools to collaborate to support children’s learning. She added that parents should share the methods that helped their children learn better with teachers.

According to her, some children may understand lessons better through visual materials, role-play, practical activities, or other approaches, and such information can help teachers provide more effective support.

The principal recommended at least 30 minutes of daily study for primary school pupils and one hour for secondary school students, stressing that consistency was more important than lengthy study sessions.

She also advised parents to ensure that children travelling for holiday visits had access to appropriate learning materials and to monitor their screen exposure.

Ms Aghayere said recreational screen use should be balanced with reading, creative activities, and other forms of learning, while the content children consumed should be appropriate for their age.

She warned that children who completely disengage from learning during the holiday might find it harder to recall previous lessons and adjust to school routines after resumption.

The principal urged parents not to wait until school resumed before addressing learning difficulties, describing the holiday as an opportunity to understand what worked best for each child and put appropriate support in place.

(NAN)