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the teacher has rang them once a week and set a challenge like draw something or learn the abc or 1-50 and also we have been staying in touch via video facetime so he has enjoyed that for about 5 minutes before getting bored and wandering off , But he has been watching both his parents working from home and that has taught him how to speak to people politely and with patience

Making learning fun

sent them surprise gift parcels. large envelopes containing colouring books, pens, magazines, crafting bits for projects, beads for making bracelets etc. ordered reading books to be delivered direct. talk to them by phone to discuss what they were doing, encourage to do school work. remind to water seeds i sent, eg sunflower, salad and how they are growing. what birds they have seen in garden. miss our cuddles.

Nothing has changed between us, we still FT and talk, he likes to show me what he has learned and we discuss it, my daughter tells me in advance and I do a little on line homework, so I can contribute, but giving him the impression he is teaching me. This week 'life cycle of a frog'.. Did you know a baby frog is called a froglet! I do now!

Making time for them to 'help' with everyday tasks; weeding, picking peas, washing up....

We have kept in touch via zoom and we have met up a couple of times since we been able to we allowed. Our grandson is only 5mths so doesn’t really know us yet as we haven’t be able to spend much time with him (for obvious reasons). Our granddaughter is older so knows us. Despite everything our bond and love grows stronger. Their mother is a very good natural teacher so she is always thinking up new ways of helping them to learn. This prize would help though ??

Every time we see our granddaughter we make sure we read a book to her and show her the pictures as we read. IT is a great way to learn

Having a toy table with a different theme for him to find with each visit.
Play mobile,
Lego, trains,
Painting,
Dolls house,
Action men,
Cars
Even when a play, table is repeated, the theme can be changed.

I have nine grandchildren, all different and all with different educational aspirations and expectations. Two of the boys are challenged by dyslexia and dyspraxia and for them, home learning has been a struggle, despite the best efforts of their parents and grandparents. I started reading stories by video early in lockdown, but they wearied of that and so did I! They sent me a questions and answer 'quiz' about how life was for me as a child - that worked for all of us and reminded me of some happy and sad times. I think that it's become apparent to all the parents in my family that whilst they can and do their absolute best to school the children of our family it's not easy. Great respect for teachers in general has been observed!

As far as my own relationship with the grandchildren goes, I feel sad that certainly with the eldest (teenagers ) and youngest (who is three) ...despite the birthday Zooms and the odd conversation at my window, it feels as though I have 'faded' from their lives without anyone really noticing. I would love to see them in person and talk and hug them, but it feels as though they are moving on without me, in a way, almost as if I had died. They are of course always pleased to say hello virtually, but they certainly aren't missing me on a daily basis as much as I miss them! I'm glad in a way as I'd hate them to be feeling sad. I guess that whatever we face in our lives, most people learn to cope and keep moving forwards - especially the young, thankfully - as they are the future.

We have asked them to explain to us what they have been doing, via Skype or Facetime, and we have been giving them lots of praise and encouragement. Our eldest grandson had to do a task about inheriting family characteristics so we were able to give him information for that.
When we were able to meet them from school, talk about their day and see what they brought home in their bags we got more involved. By the time we chat online they seem to have forgotten what they did!

Making time for fun for example baking together.

my grandson aged 4 has yet to start school, he has struggled with only going to the local woods as we are all keen walkers across Dartmoor, he is now happier, we have only spoken on the phone

I think children learn best through play - when they don't realise they are learning! For me and my 5 young grandchildren, the most successful activities have involved story time - I tell or read them a story via video link, then they tell or read me a story and we chat about it. We have also shared online baking (and eating!) and lots of music making. Only time will tell if it has changed my relationship with my grandchildren - but I don't think so. Who knows, perhaps it will have been enriched through the quality time we have shared.

My Grandchildren live in Tokyo so it's difficult withthe time difference to keep a regular contact - my eldest Grandson aged 4 and 3/4 has daily lessons and interaction with his Interational School via video link, and Mum and Dad follow up withthe teaching. My youngest grandaughter is 18 mths and my d-i-l has to try to teach/play and cook etc, etc as my son (who helps a lot) is working fronm home in a demanding job - this is all in a small Japanese apartment. apart from the time difference I am self employed and working flat out here in the UK so sadly unable to help with their education - but my son keeps me in touch with them via FB Messenger when he can. They usually visit here once a year - but this year of course they can't come - and it's likely to be a very long time until I see them again in person.

My grandchildren stay over 50 miles away and I have found it extremely difficult to stay in contact with them. The older ones tend to have their own lives and the younger ones stay with my ex daughter-in-law and the divorce was very acrimonious. I guess for the younger ones keeping to a routine as much as possible, not treating it like a holiday and make sure they have contact with their friends through social
l media.

Sticking to a routine and encouragement. Try to make learning as fun as possible. We’ve been keeping in contact via video call but it isn’t the same as face to face.

My grandchildren live a long distance from me and also have been into school/ nursery as parents are key workers. Saying that we set up an email account to encourage literacy and I have been setting them challenges as add on. They have also enjoyed joe wicks first thing in the morning and learning through life experiences like cooking , fence painting and science experiments. Bike riding has become a big favourite ( challenged 4 yr old to ride without stabilisers and he quickly did!) as has any outdoor activity.

my grandchildren have learnt that even at home there will and should be some structure and routine on a daily basis, parents, of course , should and will ensure that timetables are adhered to

I’ve found a positive reaction when playing a piece of classical music and asking them to envisage the scene being set, for example, 1812 overture finale. Lots of horse galloping and listening for the bells and canons. Great fun, even with the 18 month old.

Grandchildren’s School has an excellent home school timetable with weekly catch ups with the teacher and rotation of friends via Zoom. They all have to have something to show and tell to talk about. Our children have found best to use this as a guide, and only do what they feel capable of doing, this flexible approach has been amazing, and if feeling reluctant, get them to be the teacher, works every time.
We have split the game “Guess Who” and play this via Zoom, which is great fun.

Sending things through the post addressed to the grandchildren has been a real hit, it makes a change for them than getting everything digitally. With parents trying to home school I see my role as giving space for creativity and imagination, which often has educational benefits as well

A flexible routine with a balanced timetable of work, fun and physical activities. Usually school set maths and English in the morning. The afternoon on projects that encouraged creativity and research. It seems to be working ok.

Love BBC bite size. Found it very resourceful and informative for us all.

One of my granddaughters had ‘maths week’ last week and one of her tasks was converting old money to new and vice versa! Obviously I was first port of call via Face Time. It was lovely being able to give her the background to the changeover to decimal coinage as I was working in a bank at that time. We were both left a bit mystified as to why we ever though £ s d were a good idea - it seem so complicated now.

Our grandchildren are 4 (just) and 2 (nearly) and with the older one it is repetition and reinforcement at every opportunity that works best in our experience. Having to remain at a distance (we are shielding) has very much reduced our opportunities for doing anything with them beyond a virtual birthday party by Zoom for the 4-years old.

I've made this plea before but it has fallen on deaf ears. Why do you not move this message box to just underneath the question(s) you're asking and then respondents could see the question without having to scroll up? I copied and pasted it into the top of this message box this time, simply to have it readily available but that only works for a short while as well because of the small size of the box whereas if you were to do as I suggest the questions would be visible throughout the reply process. I removed the pasted question before posting my response.
Other sites seem to manage to do what I have suggested and I really would appreciate a response to this part of my post to learn if there is a logical reason that I have missed for not doing it.