Activities that polish learners' academic skills are at the core of the school curriculum. There has been continuous research as to which activities are most enjoyable and beneficial for kids. There are a lot of benefits to the traditional way of learning that include games and activities with attractive visual and audio content. Internet learning has also made its way into the classroom. Sites such as time4learning offer many suggestions as to which activities and games to use in the classroom and home. The activities are divided into the area of study and grade level to make search easier for teachers and parents.
Learning essential life skills at school is essential for elementary school students. Establishing a positive community atmosphere is the first step to teaching kids how to collaborate. Through games and collaborative learning projects they learn to establish rapport with other kids and work on solutions to problems that are beneficial for groups rather than just individuals. Dramatic play and creative movement games such as "Blindfold Game" or "Be a Cat, Be a Tree" are a great way to teach kids to coexist in teams.
According to five controlled experimental studies carried out in the United States, Canada and Australia, "Sacrificing physical education for classroom time does not improve academic performance." As a matter of fact, reducing physical education classes can result in the worsening of academic results. It has been established that kids who are physically active and fit perform better academically even though they spend less time learning the academic skills. Therefore, any kind of physical activity is great for kids.
According to a study carried out by the U.S. Department of Education, co-curricular activities in general improve academic performance even if they are not obviously connected with the area of academic study. It has been shown that participating in athletics and music has a positive effect on school performance. A lot also depends on the quality of the extracurricular instruction, the place where it is taken and the age of the kids. Participating in social work also has a good effect on the social and intellectual development of children. Watching television, on the other hand, is not considered beneficial, as it does not require much mental effort.