We’ve been doing this whole school thing for approximately six months now and if there’s one thing I’ve learnt in that time, it’s that children rarely give anything more than one-word answers about their school day.
I’ll pick B up from his grandparents after school and our conversation will usually go something like this:
Me: How was your day?
B: Good.
Me: What did you do today?
B: I can’t remember… And don’t say ‘But you’ve only just got out of school’ because I haven’t, silly!
He’s too smart. (And sassy.)
Their attention span may be short, but five year-old’s can hold on to more information about their school day than we give them credit for; there are an abundance of things that B will talk about regularly that have happened months ago. And if it’s something he’s excited about, the boy will chew your ear off for a good hour on one subject (and his favourite thing at the moment? Bullet trains.) However five year-old’s can also be super lazy. I’ve found I can get much more conversation out of my son if the questions I ask him are little more direct, to spark further conversation.
Questions to ask about the school day
- Who did you play with at break time?
- What games did you play in class?
- Did anyone make you laugh?
- Tell me about something you learnt.
- Did you learn any new letters / words / diagraphs today?
- What did you eat for lunch? Who did you sit with?
- Tell me about the best part of your day.
I try to vary what I ask or how I phrase the question, otherwise B is too smart and will always second guess what I’m going to ask him at the end of the school day!
This is such a lovely post. I always remember my Mum asking me what I did at school and I’d always say I didn’t remember haha.
Alice | alicemaysnell
Haha, it’s so easily done!
I always remember my Mum asking me what I’d done at school, I would always say “can’t remember” haha.
Alice | alicemaysnell