School Days Are Here Again! How Can You Keep Your Child Focused?
With school days quickly approaching, parents everywhere are thinking; Hallelujah! Calgon take me away, while kids are already plotting excuses to try and get out of school.
So how can we turn on their enthusiasm and keep them focused throughout the school year? Start motivating your child now by reminding them how important their education is to their success in the future.
Remind them how much fun they have making friends each year.
Give them an incentive to do their best; I found that a small decrease in chores or a movie at the end of each successful week, are good incentives or even a toy (depending on the child's age).
For older children this can be a little more complicated, and usually requires a bit more enticing like a slight increase in allowance or a later curfew on the weekend after a successful week in school.
Be sure you always have every award a child has earned in school whether for Academics, Physical education, etc...
Displayed in the Home, this gives the child a sense of Constant praise and serves as a constant reminder to them of the wonderful feeling they experienced when they achieved the award.
Praise your child at the end of each day for having achieved a successful day.
When report cards come, reward your child for "A"'s, "B"'s and even "C"'s.
I usually stick to $1 per "A", .
75 cents per "B", and .
25 cents per "C".
But I have known parents that pay higher, just depending on the child's age, class difficulty, and any learning disability the child may have (a Must to be taken into consideration).
Then, for "D"'s or "F"'s I usually deduct .
10 for each, and for each day that they get e referral, suspension, etc...
I deduct .
20 cents.
Needless to say, they try hard not to get in trouble and to keep their grades up.
Finally, when they do have a bad day, reprimand in a firm yet loving tone, listen to their side of the story as there is always two sides to the story.
Don't be quick to always believe the school officials over your child, take the time to really investigate what happened, this can easily be done by phone to the child's friends.
You can be a Parent and still be your child's best friend.
Firmness, Encouragement, Reprimand and Praise, they all go hand in hand in the task of keeping your child focused in school.
Every child is different, and while these tactics work for many, they don't necessarily work for all.
They are suggestions/opinions, it is up to each individual parent to try and try again until they find what works for them and their children.
So how can we turn on their enthusiasm and keep them focused throughout the school year? Start motivating your child now by reminding them how important their education is to their success in the future.
Remind them how much fun they have making friends each year.
Give them an incentive to do their best; I found that a small decrease in chores or a movie at the end of each successful week, are good incentives or even a toy (depending on the child's age).
For older children this can be a little more complicated, and usually requires a bit more enticing like a slight increase in allowance or a later curfew on the weekend after a successful week in school.
Be sure you always have every award a child has earned in school whether for Academics, Physical education, etc...
Displayed in the Home, this gives the child a sense of Constant praise and serves as a constant reminder to them of the wonderful feeling they experienced when they achieved the award.
Praise your child at the end of each day for having achieved a successful day.
When report cards come, reward your child for "A"'s, "B"'s and even "C"'s.
I usually stick to $1 per "A", .
75 cents per "B", and .
25 cents per "C".
But I have known parents that pay higher, just depending on the child's age, class difficulty, and any learning disability the child may have (a Must to be taken into consideration).
Then, for "D"'s or "F"'s I usually deduct .
10 for each, and for each day that they get e referral, suspension, etc...
I deduct .
20 cents.
Needless to say, they try hard not to get in trouble and to keep their grades up.
Finally, when they do have a bad day, reprimand in a firm yet loving tone, listen to their side of the story as there is always two sides to the story.
Don't be quick to always believe the school officials over your child, take the time to really investigate what happened, this can easily be done by phone to the child's friends.
You can be a Parent and still be your child's best friend.
Firmness, Encouragement, Reprimand and Praise, they all go hand in hand in the task of keeping your child focused in school.
Every child is different, and while these tactics work for many, they don't necessarily work for all.
They are suggestions/opinions, it is up to each individual parent to try and try again until they find what works for them and their children.