Having homework to complete after a long day is no fun for children or parents, but it plays an important part in your child’s development. Homework teaches your child organizational skills and helps in promoting better learning, study habits, and independence. To fend-off procrastination, arguing, and tantrums when assignments are due, incorporate some of these ideas into your nightly homework routine.
1. Designate a homework spot in the house where it is quiet and your child can work without interruption. It is difficult to find a quiet place if there are other children in the house, so do the best you can in finding a peaceful work area. You may also want to give the others some of their own quiet activities to work on. If you have another school-aged child that also has homework to complete, make a rule that whoever is finished with their assignment first still has to sit quietly and read a book. This will help the child who is still doing work to remain focused. He will not be worried about what the others are doing or what he is ‘missing out on’.
2. Prioritize a list of what needs done every night and cross-off each assignment once it is complete. This will give your child a great deal of satisfaction when she sees the progress she is making and will encourage her to want to finish the list.
3. Work on the hardest assignment first and get it out of the way. By using this approach, he will be tackling the one that takes the most time and concentration while his energy levels are still high.
4. Break large assignments up into smaller parts. This technique is especially helpful if your child has difficulty concentrating or has trouble working on one task for a long period of time. If she is still having a hard time focusing, divide the smaller parts into ten-minute bouts, then let her have a quick break before she comes back to work on the rest.
5. Stay involved as much as possible without doing the work for him. If he is not sure of an answer or asks for your help, encourage him to find it on his own and show him ways in which he can do that such as re-reading the material, looking through study notes, or going online to visit educational sites.
6. Set consequences for incomplete work. Make it rule that if your child leaves homework unfinished or does not take it seriously, a privilege will be lost for the rest of the night and/or the next day.
Do You Think Your Child May Need a Tutor?
The above techniques may not be working for your child and homework may start to become more and more of a struggle every night. Ask your child’s teacher what she thinks will help your child and if hiring a tutor may be worthwhile. If the teacher feels that your child may benefit from working with a tutor, you have many options available in finding the right one. Before paying top dollar for tutoring services in your area, consider these suggestions:
- Your child’s teacher may volunteer some one-on-one time before or after school. Please note: Do not ask her to do this for you—she will offer if it’s something that she does for students that need a little extra help.
- Retired teachers sometimes offer tutoring services, so be sure to ask around.
- Do you have a high school or college-aged neighbor or family friend? Ask if she would be interested in helping your child out for some extra money.
Don’t forget…schoolwork lays the foundation for your child’s future successes and should always be viewed as something positive and not a hassle or burden. A child can never learn too much!
