Josie's Window

Are you at your wit’s end when helping your child with their homework and you just end up fighting? You’re not alone, parents have often reported experiencing this with their child. But the good news is there are ways and method to teach them. It all depends on the tutor’s patience and method.

As a parent you can do it. Let’s face it, not everyone can afford a tutor. Every parent though can help her child with his lesson. All it takes is a little patience and the right technique.

• Have a regular study time – a scheduled time for home-work and reviewing each day will help establish study as a regular part of child’s day. With this routine, parents and tutors will find it easier to persuade the child to begin his lesson since he knows it is time to “work”. Don’t wait for your child to be in the right mood. You’ll never get started if you do so.

• Study all subjects – although subject with homework or scheduled quizzes would be priority, it is good to allot certain time to review other subjects as well. Learning must be reinforced or repeated for it to be meaningful to a child.

• Adapt the study schedules to your child’s personality, needs and approach learning. If he’s the type who needs to warm-up, start with easy subjects first and vice versa. It is usually better to tackle a child’s favorite subjects toward the end of the session, this way he still have something to look forward to. Save the best for the last.

• Keep it an hour at most. An hour would usually suffice for graders. But parents should adjust accordingly depending on whether the child seems restless or bored, or if he shows sustained interest.

• Use memory aids. Memorizing facts, formulas, history dates and poems can be made easier with the use of acrostics, mnemonics, and codes. Another learning technique is analogy. Example, use song or movements for the musically-inclined and active child. Applying lessons to the particular experiences of the child and tapping his interests.