How to help your child .....

Study

The development of good study habits in a child's daily routine is a positive approach to ensuring long term success in education.

The following is a brief list of successful strategies that parents may consider when developing positive study habits for their child.

• Acknowledge what your child can do, rather than concentrate on what they cannot do.
• Read to your child.
• Use informal activities to make learning fun.
• Have dinner time discussions about topics that are useful and of interest to them.
• Ask them to help read the street map or find the address when you are driving somewhere.
• Encourage your child to write letters to friends or relatives.
• Let them write out birthday cards.
• Join a library with your children and make regular visits together to borrow books.
• Listen to a variety of music with them.
• Discuss everyday situations with them as they arise.
• Give them the opportunity to care of a pet or take responsibility for a particular task.
• Have the family work together as a team on a specific task.
• Play games that help to develop coordination such as bat and ball skills.
• Ask your children about their day at school.
• Ask your child to check their bags for homework.
• Ask questions that start with "Show me...", "Tell me...", "How was..." or "What did..." to encourage your child to talk about school.
• Spend some time each day listening to them read, helping them learn their spelling words etc.
• Praise your child when they are successful.
• If your child is not doing well at something talk to your child's teacher.
• Encourage them to keep doing their best.
• Help your child select regular time for studying.
• Encourage them to keep to the timetable.
• Help your child be prepared for the next day by making sure homework is done and packed in the school bag.
• Set aside time for regular breaks when doing homework and study during the school week.
• Provide your child with a suitable homework and study area, table and comfortable chair, good lighting.
• Have school equipment such as folders, paper; pens and pencils readily available.
• Try to keep noise and distractions to a minimum. If possible, turn off the TV.

As your child grows older:

As students grow older they will experience the examination process. The "one off" or end-of-year examination is only one of the many methods that educators utilise to assess students. It is also important to remember that "on-going" or progressive assessment is another widely used strategy that allows a teacher to assess a student's progress. With appropriate planning students should be able to undertake an examination or assessment with support and confidence.

• Allow a set time for completing homework or tasks not done at school.
• Encourage revision of work, reading or updating of notes, if not enough homework is set for a given subject.
• Give praise appropriate to effort.
• Ask children to evaluate their own work
• Arrange for children to have their own workspace from an early age, preferably when they start school.
• Have them identify what will be the covered in the exam.
• Have them identify what will be the structure of the examination.
• Suggest that they make a summary of work so that they have prepared material to revise for the exams.
• Encourage them to complete revision questions appropriate to the work to be examined.
• Explain to them the benefit of preparing detailed answer outlines.
• If they are studying a number of subjects, help them to average out the time allocated for homework and study through the week so that all subjects receive equal time.
• Help them to create a timetable that is realistic and achievable.

Remember that children need relaxation time and that homework should never rob a child of enthusiasm or a time to relax and enjoy family activities.

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