Many parents wonder what they can do to make it easier for their kids to succeed with school. It can often be a delicate balance between offering support and letting kids figure it out for themselves, and this will also depend on your child’s age. You don’t want to take over or do it for them, but you don’t want to leave them struggling either. This issue is especially relevant right now after the COVID19 pandemic, with many kids falling behind academically after such a long time of uncertainty and schools closing, forcing kids to learn from home. If you’re a parent and want to help your child succeed, here are some things you can do.
Take a Test
Getting your child to take a test like the CAT4 can help you figure out where their cognitive abilities are and where they have the potential to get to in the future. You can find some high quality examples when it comes to the questions asked, or ask your child’s school to give them this test so that you and your child’s teachers can get a better understanding of where they are up to and what they might need to help them improve. This is especially important if you feel that your child might have fallen behind after COVID19 and may need some extra support to help bring them up to speed.
Set a Homework Routine
It can help to have a good routine when it comes to how, where, and when your child should complete their homework. Getting your child into a daily homework routine that they are used to will help to make it a habit and use spare time wisely for studying and improving their abilities. Along with this, it’s important for parents to make sure that there is somewhere quiet and free from distractions in the home for kids to get their homework done.
Encourage Healthy Sleep Habits
Sometimes as a parent, the best thing that you can do to help your child succeed in school is to help them improve their lifestyle habits, especially when it comes to sleep. Kids who are not getting enough sleep are unlikely to do as well as they could in school no matter how clever they are. Experts suggest that 3-5 year olds should get 10-13 hours, 6-12 year olds get 9-12 hours, and 13-18 year olds get 8-10 hours of sleep. To help your child get better sleep, consider implementing positive sleep habits like avoiding screen time before bed, a relaxing bedtime routine, breathing exercises, and a cool, comfortable, dark, and quiet bedroom.
Learn From Mistakes
Many parents are a little bit scared of letting their kids make mistakes, but the truth is that mistakes are a great opportunity for learning. Reframing how you view mistakes or failures in your household can make all the difference to your child’s success as it gives you the chance to put a more positive spin on any situations where they don’t get something quite right, by seeing it as an opportunity to learn how to improve for next time. When your child comes home with a C on a test, this could be a good opportunity to figure out where they could have done better, so that they can improve their grade for the next one, for example. Focus on solutions instead of what your child has gotten wrong and be there to help them come up with a plan for improvement.
If you are concerned about your child’s school performance, then helping them improve their academic and lifestyle habits, along with focusing on finding solutions and learning from mistakes, can be a great way to support them.
