‘A' FOR EFFORT - KATE'S HOMESCHOOLING SECRETS

AS THE ROYALS GET TO GRIPS WITH PLAYING TEACHER OK! REVEALS HOW KATE AND WILLIAM ARE KEEPING GEORGE, CHARLOTTE AND LITTLE LOUIS BUSY DURING LOCKDOWN

- ANNA MATHESON & KAT ROMERO

When the UK was plunged into the third lockdown of the pandemic, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were among millions of parents facing the challenge of homeschooling their children again.

Prince George, seven, and Princess Charlotte, five, attend the prestigious Thomas’s Battersea in London, where school fees are up to £7,000 per term. And royal expert Katie Nicholl, author of Kate: The Future Queen, says the school is keen for the children to learn through practical projects as well as Zoom calls.

“Kate and William are very involved with the children’s schooling,” she says. “Thomas’s Battersea expects a hands-on approach from parents, that’s part of the reason they picked it. George and Charlotte are studious and love to learn, so they are pretty self-sufficient when it comes to Zoom learning. But the school likes the children to do practical projects too.

“Kate revealed last year that Charlotte was making spider sandwiches for her homework [a fun activity based on the book Spider Sandwiches, by Claire Freedman]. It can be full-on for parents.”

Katie says Kate’s charity work around the early years has influenced how she approaches home learning with her own children, as she realises the significance of outdoor play. She explains, “Kate has been interested in how outdoor learning can benefit children. She got to meet children who had lessons outside and ask how they enjoyed it. She saw the benefit first-hand. Kate is aware of screen time and tries to limit the children being exposed to too much. When the children have a break, she takes them outside, come rain or shine.