When parents make a deliberate effort to help their child with homework, it encourages the latter and helps in the development of a positive attitude towards education from early on.
Dedicate a time and place for homework firstly. Try to stick to this time daily as well as the place. The time should be such that it is not immediately after your child comes back from school. Allow him time to eat, rest, take a break, and then when he is refreshed, you can sit down with the studies. And the place should ideally be a study with minimal noise or disturbance.
Turn off the television or music, and strain away all sources of distraction before you begin studies. Building up an ambiance of concentration is a must.
Eating something, light snack, is helpful before studies.
Familiarize yourself with your child’s studies, course material, syllabus, and other information and guidelines as per the institute’s requirements. This will help you help your child better and more effectively.
Another good thing would be to meet the teachers at regular intervals to gauge your child’s performance – strengths and weaknesses.
Ask what is taught in school and to explain the same. This will tell you how much your child has learnt, where he lacks and where and how you can help.
Most parents are so obsessed with learning tools they were taught in school that they impart all of them to their wards. It is a good idea to help them with such methods, but you should evaluate the importance and validity of the same in present day scenario, and only if it suits the purpose should you go ahead with them. They should be progressive or they tend to become methods of overburdening the kid.
You should try to make him an independent learner. Avoid spoon-feeding. From helping out with everything, become a guide to watch over and assist. Motivate him to find answers and come to you with doubts rather than giving all the answers.
Go through the teachers’ comments on your child’s work and assignments. Learn about the common mistakes, weak points, and correct them.
Discourage blind copying from resources like books and internet. Teach him to gather information, assimilate them, pick out the essential parts and then put it down in his own words and style. This habit inculcated in childhood will help in future.
Be supportive. Praise a work well done and avoid negative criticism. Correct the follies gently and constructively.
Lastly, try to make homework time a fun time rather than a chore that has to be done on a daily basis. Make it a time to communicate, talk freely, solve puzzles and doubts, and keep the environment light. Try to ease your child’s tension and fears about studies.
