10 Knock-Out Tips for Homework Success!

"I like a teacher who gives you something to take home to think about besides homework."
Lily Tomlin

Problem solving, simply put, is the ability to ask the right questions in order to pinpoint what the true issue is. The first obvious question is whether your child is being asked to work at a level beyond their comprehension or not. If this is the case, you will need to consult with teachers and/or tutors to get them the help they need.

Very often, however, resistance to studying/doing homework stems from two things: not understanding the value of doing the work and/or not being validated for doing it well, and not having the basic tools for being able to experience positive results.

Here are ten knock-out tips to give doing homework a jumpstart:

1. Make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep

2. Make sure your children eat a healthy diet – this includes fruit, protein and healthy carbohydrates rather than sugary foods which will make it difficult for your child to concentrate. A healthy, light snack before doing homework will help concentration.

3. Have water to drink nearby

4. Have supplies stocked up and easily available including a dictionary.

5. Have a designated time to do the work – if their schedule shifts daily, figure out a plan together for doing homework that fits in with the various activities during the week. If a child gets in the habit of doing their homework before their recreational activities, they can be rewarded with the rest of the day/evening ‘off’; this teaches them lifelong good habits regarding responsibility.

6. Have a designated spot to do homework. Make sure this place is welcoming, uncluttered, well lit, and relatively quiet – free of iPods, cell phones, TV, e-mail.

7. Have them tackle the easier or favorite assignments first. This will build a feeling of accomplishment. When they get to the tougher assignments, have them skip the questions they don’t understand and come back to them later.

8. Suggest they get up and stretch/walk around the room about every half hour to get the oxygen circulating to the brain.

9. Utilizing different colored highlighters helps make important information – or information that you need to review - stand out in easy, lively ways.

10. Teach them to begin by reviewing the information from that day, and end by looking ahead to the information that will be covered the following day. Being prepared will increase a feeling of self esteem which will make learning simpler and more fun.

Your child needs to learn to be somewhat self-motivating which can be inspired in several ways. If a child feels that they have choice in their lives, it empowers them. A very effective strategy to use is to give a choice: -- Which do you prefer: this or that? The curtain or the door? One or two? Which would you prefer: doing your homework tonight, or Saturday morning? Before or after the game?

Positive validation achieves a more positive result than trying to control someone. Encourage and praise your child when they do a good job with their homework. Have them talk about how good it feels to have gotten the work done early so that they could spend their evening as they wanted.

Teaching your children basic life skills when they are young will set them up for greater success in all areas of their later life.