Routines & Organization
Your child should have a daily routine. Obviously, there are different activities on different days, so each day will be a little bit different, but work together with your child to map out a sample weekly time schedule. Then, each Sunday, sit down together and review the schedule for the week ahead.
Every single day, your child should bring home a completely filled in assignment notebook / agenda. If your child isn't writing down all assignments & / isn't writing them down completely, then you need to ask the teacher(s) to initial the assignment notebook EACH & EVERY DAY. What happens if your child doesn't bring home the assignment notebook / agenda? What if it isn't initialed? That's where a good behavior plan comes in (see below).
At the designated time, your child should be in the designated place (see "Study Environment" below) completing his / her assignments.
When your child finishes the assignments, he / she should show you what was done, then put the assignments in the correct folder(s), the folders / books etc. should go into the backpack, and the backpack should go next to the front door (or other designated place). Also, when you are reviewing assignments, think of a "good boss". A good boss doesn't do your work; you present your work to your boss and ask for clarification when needed. The goal is an independent learner! The parent's role is to facilitate and provide quality inspections -- not to do the work or be a constant hand holder.
How long should homework take? Your child should NOT spend hours on homework!!! RESEARCH consistently shows that 10 minutes per grade level is the rule, so a third grader should spend no more than 30 minutes on homework. This does not mean 30 minutes of whining about doing the homework; it means 30 minutes of focused work. However, your child should take short breaks every 10 - 15 minutes. So, work for 15 minutes, then 3 - 5 minute "movement" break -- your child should get up and wiggle around for a few minutes. Then, 15 minutes more of focused work, then done!
Please note that this time does NOT include reading time. You should spend an additional 20 minutes or so reading together with your child. Take turns reading (alternate paragraphs or pages), since this allows your child to practice both visual and auditory comprehension. It also allows you to identify reading difficulties such as: losing ones place, skipping words, saying the wrong word, etc. Don't stop / correct your child every time he / she makes a mistake; that is very de-motivating for the student. Just make a mental note and go back over the missed words when your child finishes that paragraph / page. If you notice any of the reading difficulties listed above, PLEASE make an appointment to have your child's visual processing skills evaluated ASAP. (I evaluate visual processing skills as part of the comprehensive assessments that I offer, and / or I can refer you to a great developmental optometrist). ASK your child questions at the end of each reader's turn; one of the BEST questions is "what do you think will happen next...why". Another great tool for ALL ages (including adults) is to use AUDIO books (on tape / cd / mp3); the student should read along with the audible book -- not just listen to it. I recommend an mp3 player like iPod that allow you to adjust the speed of the audible reader; that way your child can pick the reading speed closest to their own silent reading speed. You can get audible books through the public library as well as online sources like audible.com.
Besides homework and reading time, try to include as much fun learning as possible. I am a huge fan of non-computer games like Boggle, Muggins, Racko, Bananagrams, Rat a Tat Cat, Quiddler, and many more. Board games provide practice of multiple learning skills: remembering the rules, adding up the score, and many more. I keep a running list of my favorite games, books, etc. HERE.
Nintendo Wii Balance Board -- although I frequently warn parents about too much screen time, I been very impressed with the sensory motor training benefits of the Nintendo Wii Balance Board. I use wooden balance boards with my students in the training lab, and I have been amazed by the speed of progress of those students using a Wii Fit Balance Board at home. So, if you don't have one already, I encourage you to seriously consider it for the next birthday / christmas / gift giving occasion; parents have also told me how much they enjoy playing with the Wii. There are lots of games for the Wii that utilize the Balance Board, and I would love to hear about your favorites.
Behavior Plans
Usually, when I mention implementing a "behavior plan", parents think of "good" and "bad" behavior. However, a behavior plan is just a formalized plan to reinforce behaviors that you want to see more of, e.g. bring home a completely filled out assignment notebook / agenda along w/ needed materials or complete homework without whining, etc.
Personally, I think the "Nothing in Life is Free" method works quite well, and it passes the common sense test. In life, there are things we like to do, and there are things that we need to do (but may not enjoy). So, in order for your child to do the things he / she likes to do, he/she will need to do those "need to" things!
Setting up a token economy is a good way to reinforce desired behaviors, since you can assign values for both the behaviors that you want to reinforce as well as values for the activities that your child likes (rewards). I am a huge fan of activity rewards versus "things". One other VERY important thing is that you must NOT take tokens away once they have been earned. Despite how most of us were raised (and even though WE turned out just fine), research consistently shows that punishment is ineffective -- however, punishment is HIGHLY reinforcing to the punisher. I highly recommend "What Shamu Taught Me About Life, Love, and Marriage: Lessons for People from Animals and Their Trainers by Amy Sutherland. Disclosure: I have in no way, shape, or form mastered this (as evidenced by dogs' lack of training and my ability to notice every single thing that my husband does wrong :( -- but, it really does work; it's just not how most of us were raised, so we have to break old habits and create new ones.
Take some time to read up on how to set up your behavior plan and token economy: here , here , here.
The most important part of an effective behavior plan (and effective parenting) is CONSISTENCY / CONSISTENCY / CONSISTENCY!!!
Study Environment
This is that "designated place" mentioned above. Your child should have a set place complete w/ all needed supplies materials. While some students work best holed up in their rooms, some students prefer to work closer to the family, e.g. at a kitchen counter or dining room table. Some students need silence and some work well with background music (Mozart / classical -- NOT pop / rock or radio and NO TV). Some students work best standing up and some students need to wiggle while they work, so I recommend adjustable drafting tables and sitting on exercise balls (these tips work for grown ups, too). When trying to memorize math facts / dates or other information -- try using flash cards / note cards and MOVEMENT -- bouncing on a mini-trampoline works quite well. Research also shows that chewing gum helps with focus and concentration, so break out the gum during homework time.
HELP! Please send me your questions, suggestions, etc. I am always looking for new topics and love to hear what's working and what's not working for you in your family's "real world". Thanks in advance for taking a moment to share!
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