Helping your child with homework

Do you have any homework assignments tonight?

How is your report coming?

Have you studied for tomorrow’s test?

These are questions that parents need to ask their child after

each day of school According to Linda Agler Sonna, author of

The Homework Solution, “Keeping tabs on a child who tries to

wiggle out of doing homework can be frustrating and

exhausting. When poor study habits hinder academic progress,

A child’s future may be on the line. Overachievers may place so

much pressure to succeed on themselves that they endanger

their physical and emotional health. When the homework

problems are one of many difficulties a child is having, parents

may feel overwhelmed and confused as to how to intervene.”

To deal with these problems, keep in mind the following

suggestions:

First, recognize the purpose of homework. Mary Stewart

Miller, author of The School Book observed: “homework

is not for earning an A. Homework is for learning. It is the

basic tool for a child’s learning experience. “let’s say ten math

problems dealing with addition and subtraction are assigned

to your child for homework. If your child does the problems

correctly or makes mistakes and corrects them himself, he is

successful. He has learned how to add and subtract. But if he

does them incorrectly and cannot find his errors, he is still

successful. He knows what he doesn’t know. The teacher

can spend some time with your child explaining how to correct

the errors.

Second, remember that homework teaches responsibility.

Miller concluded that “homework is a tool for assuming the

Responsibility of good study habits. Wen a child tackles his

homework, he schedules his time, organizes his work, ignores

distractions. In short, he learns self-discipline. After a child

struggles through his homework, he turns it in the next day

with the pride of knowing “I didn’t.” Right or wrong as

his homework may be, he gains self-confidence in knowing

that from the chaos of mind, notes, and loose-leaf binder,

despite temptations, frustration, and boredom, he found a way

to get his homework done on time.

Third, eliminate noisy distractions. Don’t allow for any

Computer games or television during homework time.

Computers and television are the biggest distractions faced

by young students. Completing homework requires the

undivided attention of the child.

Fourth, observe how your child studies. John Gasson,

author of Getting the Most out of School suggests that parents

“pay attention to the way your child reads a page. Does he

scan correctly and efficiently, or does he move his eyes over

the page in a haphazard way? Does he make written notes of

what he reads. Does he try to recall what he has just read,

and try to put it into his own words when he is reviewing

for a test.”