Fun Ways to Study with your Child

A lot of kids do not like sitting down and doing their homework. It could either be a struggle to sit your child down and crack the books with them OR it could be fun and easy. As a former tutor to children, I found it surprising to hear a lot of moms tell me "I don't know how you do it; I could never get my son/daughter to sit still and focus on his/her homework / worksheet / essay / research!" Well, to parents all across the world who are encountering this type of situation, here are some of my tips:

1. If you are not yet doing so, set a regular schedule for study time.

This is especially helpful for younger children. Having a routine will help them adjust and let them know what to expect to do each day.

2. Have short breaks.

If your study time is 2 hours long, have a 5 - 10 minute break in between. You can both snack on cookies and milk or go outside and blow bubbles for a while. This will help relieve both your and your child's stress.

3. After the break, get serious again--but do not get TOO serious.

Make it clear that once the break is over, it's time to finish the homework. However, you can use their homework material to tell light jokes or make your child use the material in "real life"! For example, if you are doing a math homework (ugh!!), and Joe is trying to figure out how many apples he can share with his friend equally. How about trying to let your child imagine that he is trying to share his apples (or toys, or whatever) to his friend. This way, he will be able to understand the word problem and imagine that it is happening to him. This will also help him with his cognitive and analytical skills.

4. Stick to the schedule. No extensions.

This is very important! Kids are fidgety and they have a good sense of time. Once study time is over, it's cartoon time or play time for them. So, try to accomplish the task within the specific time frame. This is a good practice regarding time management for the child as well.

5. Sometimes, learning does not end during study time.

If, for example, you have taught your child new vocabulary words, you can use them during dinner conversations as well. This way, learning is not limited to just study time. More often than not, kids won't even realize that they are studying / learning outside "study time".

These are just some of the tips that I have used when I was a private after-school home tutor to grade school children. Kids are fun to be around with and it's always a pleasure to see them learning and applying what you have taught them in "real life". So, the next time you sit down with your child to study, don't fret! Make it fun and they will enjoy studying!

Actively listen to your child's needs and requests regarding homework.

Make it fun.

Don't stress! Kids respond to stress by being stressed as well.

Make sure there is a supply of yummy snacks for break time.

Smile and try to make jokes to make homework light and stress-free