2 Minute noodles: Daily routines to support your child's Learning at home
What can we learn from 2 minute noodles?
As Kiwis we have all had Maggi 2 minute noodles at some stage in our lives. As a food it is fairly mundane, not the most nutritional, but is simple, easy to prepare and gives us sustenance... but a fairly forgettable meal.
Unusual segue to an education concept but stay with me… I want to introduce ‘2 minute noodles’ as a way to communicate about your child’s education.
Daily Routines
For Total Teaching, 2 minute noodles is a simple idea that we want to share with you.
Just like the mundane food, we want to use the mundane routines in your life as an opportunity to communicate effectively with your child/ren.
Look for 3 opportunities each day to create a ‘2 minute noodle’. When you sit down for breakfast, make lunches, drive/walk to or from school, brush your teeth, get ready for bed etc. Use this as a time to have a discussion - no phones, no distractions, just one on one interactions. Then make this a routine, make it a regular activity and make ‘2 minute noodles’ a regular part of your daily life.
In this video Dr. Jordan Peterson discusses the importance of keeping a routine. We want to stress this importance for ‘2 minute noodles’. Make it frequent and consistent, the more it is a part of the regular routine the more it will become natural for you and your family.
What does ‘2 minute noodles’ look like?
The emphasis is on a conversation focused on learning, not teaching. What this means is, ask questions that promote a conversation, reinforce what they can do and help solidify their understanding by asking them to communicate or express their ideas. Avoid using it as a time to teach them new knowledge. Think of yourself as a vehicle for them to explore ideas.
An example of how I use 2 minute noodles with my family is by having conversations during breakfast. As I write this my daughters are 4 and 16 months. With my oldest girl most of our conversations are around letters, letter sounds and numbers. What letter does your name start with? What other words have a B sound? What other letters do you know? Or I heard you learnt more numbers at kindy? How many spoonfuls have you had
Obviously the conversations change as the students get older but the intent stays the same. How are your times tables coming along? What tables are you confident in? Why are you so confident? What are you close to mastering?
Final Thoughts
There are a few main points with ‘2 minute noodles’.
Have conversations with your child/ren consistently
Have conversations with your child/ren frequently.
Focus on their learning, not your teaching.
Remove distractions, get rid of the devices (a particular weakness for me) and be in that moment with them.
Create a habit of making '2 minute noodles' each day. Continue to support your child's learning at home with our free educational resources.
