You’ve always known your child is smart as a whip. They can solve puzzles in a flash and carry on an adult conversation in many difficult topics. But despite your child’s innate intelligence, they often fall behind in school and receive poor grades as a result. Perhaps your kid struggles to understand test questions, or has a difficult time completing the amount of homework received each night. So what can you do to help your child stay ahead of the curve?
Start with a Nutritious Breakfast
Although your son may adore those eye-catching cartoon characters on the box, or your daughter can’t eat enough of those sugary flakes, you should take care that they start each day with a well-balanced breakfast.
While the idea may seem cliche, studies have shown that children who habitually eat breakfast do better on short-term memory tasks and verbal fluency than those who don’t. Foods with a high glycemic index (such as sugary cereals) tend to cause a peak in blood sugar levels, which then drop dramatically after two hours or so. And with a dip in blood sugar comes a release of hormones that negatively affect concentration, mood, and memory.
Teach Organizational Skills
When your child has to juggle assignments from math, English, science, music, and art, they may struggle to remember each essay, book report, or project for each class. And the more homework you forget, the further behind they fall.
To help your child stay on top of the seemingly endless pile of homework, give them a few basic organizational tools. A calendar or planner will let your child write down assignments and to-do lists, while some smart-phone apps will give reminders about projects several days (or weeks) before they are due.
If your child consistently struggles to write down tasks, review the list with him or her at the beginning and end of the day to stay on track. When necessary, talk to your child’s teachers about additional methods to keep up on assignments.
Try an Alternative Approach to Learning
Not everyone learns in the same way. Some students excel when given visual representations while others need a hands-on approach to grasp certain ideas. Unfortunately, many public schools focus on help students as a group succeed to guarantee funding, and some teachers don’t have time to tutor individual students.
If your student frequently falls behind on topics, consider enrolling them in a charter school or even an online alternative like a cyber school in PA. Many charter schools have smaller class sizes and focus on alternative, innovative teaching methods to ensure each child receives a complete education.
When you follow these three steps, you can create a better learning environment for your child and stay on top of all their assignments.
