How to Help Your Child Succeed at School
Every child has the power to succeed in school and in life and every parent or family member can help. The question is: How can we help our children succeed? The answer comes from a combination of common sense and research about how children learn and about how to prepare them to learn.
Here are some things that you can do to help your child to make the most of that time:
- 1. Encourage Your Child to Read – Helping your child become a reader is the
single most important thing that you can do to help the child to succeed in school—and in life. The importance of reading simply can’t be overstated. Reading helps children in all school subjects
- 2. Talk with Your Child – Talking and listening play major roles in children’s school success. It’s through hearing parents and family members talk and through responding to that talk that young children begin to pick up the language skills they will need if they are to do well. For example, children who don’t hear a lot of talk and who aren’t encouraged to talk themselves often have problems learning to read, which can lead to other school problems. In addition, children who haven’t learned to listen carefully often have trouble following directions and paying attention in class.
Think of talking with your child as being like a tennis game with words—instead of a ball—bouncing back and forth. Find time to talk any place, for example:
- As you walk with your child or ride with her in a car or on a bus, talk with her about what she’s doing at school
- As you shop in a store, talk with your child about prices, differences in brands and how to pick out good vegetables and fruit.
- As you fix a sink or repair a broken table, ask your child to hand you the tools that you name. Talk with her about each step you take to complete the repair.
- As you watch TV together, talk with your child about the programs. If you’re watching one of her favorite programs, encourage her to tell you about the background of the characters, which ones she likes and dislikes and who the actors are.
- As you read a book with your child, pause occasionally to talk to him about what’s happening in the book.
- When your child talks to you, stop what you’re doing and pay attention.
- 3. Monitor Homework - Let your child know that you think education is important and so homework has to be done.
- Have a special place for your child to study.
- Set a regular time for homework.
- Remove distractions.
- Don’t expect or demand perfection.
You may be reluctant to help your child with homework because you feel that you don’t
know the subject well enough or because you don’t speak or read English as well as your child. But helping with homework doesn’t mean doing the homework. It isn’t about solving the problems for your child, it’s about supporting him to do his best. You may not know enough about a subject such as calculus to help your child with a specific assignment, but you can help nonetheless by showing that you are interested, helping him get organized, providing a place the materials he needs to work, monitoring his work to see that he completes it and praising his efforts.
Methods for Parents to Get to Know Their Child’s School Better
- First of all, don’t just show up at the school; make an appointment to visit.
- After you’ve made an appointment, go to the school; look around, talk to people.
- As appropriate, call or write to your child’s teachers.
- Talk to other parents about their experiences.
- Be sure to read the minutes of the school board, which are usually printed in the local newspaper.
- Take time to read the school newsletter.
- It may not always be convenient, but try to attend school functions such as open houses and PTA meetings.
Source: http://www.ed.gov/
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