Help Your Kids Re-focus on School
Get Your Kids into the Game
* Commit to learning. With your children, come up with one or two major goals that you want to accomplish for the remainder of this school year. Raising that algebra grade? Getting homework done on time and turning it in the next day?
Commit to a family-centered goal that education is important to all of you, and work together to support, encourage and help each other.
* Set up helpful routines. Give your kids the consistency of fairly regular routines (weekends and holidays can be breaks). Bedtime, wake-up, study, homework, play, family time -- kids rely on these routines, and the structure helps them to feel safe, know what’s expected of them and be successful.
* Help them organize. Organized kids do better in school than haphazard kids. Help them to set up their planners (written or electronic), to keep their notebooks and backpacks neat and orderly, to break up large assignments into smaller ones so they don’t seem overwhelming.
* Maintain healthy habits. Healthy kids are better learners. Help your children by monitoring their screen time (TV, video games, cell phones, etc.), making sure they’re getting enough sleep, insisting on their good eating habits, making sure they’re involved in regular and aerobic exercise.
* Get help early if you need it. When your kids show that they’re having trouble despite your best efforts, get help early. Ask a teacher or guidance counselor for help.
According to one survey of 2,185 children conducted by The Women’s Sports Foundation and Harris Interactive, kids who played sports or who participated in activities like frisbee, camping and hiking felt healthier and more confident about their bodies than those who did not. Other studies demonstrate that children active in sports perform better in school and are less likely to use drugs as young adults. Of course, sports can have a downside. Overly competitive leagues, discouraging coaches and injuries from unsafe practices can quickly turn kids away from sports. So how can you make sure that your child has a positive experience? Here are some tips:
* Make sure that your child is mature enough to participate. In general, kids aren’t equipped for the rules and cooperation required in team sports until age six or seven.
* Make sure that the league or coach emphasizes fun. If you ask children why they want to play a sport, they’ll probably say that they want to have fun or make friends. No matter their sport of choice, make sure that your child’s enjoying him or herself.
* Don’t stress winning over everything else. Extreme competitiveness overrides any sportsmanship your child would otherwise learn. Focus on personal markers of success, not the league championship.
You can reward your child for playing a sport even if their league does not. PlaqueMaker Plus (www.plaquemakerplus.com) allows you to print your child’s photo in a sports-shaped frame. You can also order your own trophies and present them for a job well done.
* Don’t force your child to specialize too soon. Few kids are going to get sports scholarships -; instead of trying to turn your child into a baseball or basketball star, let them try out a variety of sports. Some children are never going to enjoy sports. Instead of forcing kids into an activity that they don’t like, find another physical activity, such as track, cycling or hiking, that they can enjoy.
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