There are many ways you can help your student to succeed in school, but here are the highlights coming from one student to you.
Be Their Personal Cheerleader
Often kids are scared to go home and see what parents will say about them failing a test or class. Some kids do badly in school because they think that they’re unworthy to be learning about some things. Being there for them and understanding will most likely help their attitude be more optimistic towards schoolwork. Express your interest in their schoolwork, and praise them on their accomplishments, it will help encourage them to do better more.
Don’t Make Excuses
Avoid giving your child an excuse to get out of doing their homework. For example, Sally has to go study but she also has to clean her room if she wants to hangout with her friends that night. Sally cleans her room, but isn’t ready for the pop quiz the next day because she didn't study and do her homework. Setting aside a time for your student to do their homework is very important, but you also have to be enthusiastic about it. Another example, John is struggling with an English assignment that is due in the next couple days. John’s mom tells him, “It’s alright son, some people's brains just aren’t as good as others when it comes to English.” John takes this as a sign from you that you think they are unable to handle the assignment. Because of John’s mom’s comment (that wasn’t necessarily meant to be negative) John takes this as a sign that his mom thinks him unable to do his assignment. This can lead to stress and missing assignments.
Having the Right Mood
Make sure their study space is a space that they can really focus on their schoolwork and easy to learn. If they have a TV in their room, set rules about if they can have it on or off, and if they do have it on, what they can do. Sometimes homework can be stressful, so if your student needs to step away for twenty minutes that might even help them focus more.
There are many other ways to help your student, these are just the ones I’ve found to be more effective.
