Ways to Help Your Child with Their Homework

Reaching academic goals and fulfilling educational dreams don’t come easy. There are many road bumps along the way and sometimes, there are also times of struggles for the student. More often than not, stress can be attributed as the biggest challenge a student can encounter. Stress may come from a variety of things but ultimately affects the student in more ways than one. Probably one of the biggest contributors of stress in students are homework.

Whether it’s for preparation for a big exam or catching up to a project deadline, homework attributes to stress that students cannot avoid. As part of balancing their social and academic life, students also have to learn discipline and allot ample time for their homework. If you are a parent and you’ve come across this article, that clearly means that you are looking for ways to help your child with effective ways to keep them focused on their homework.

Why is homework important?

Because homework is also included in a student’s grades, poorly done ones can also lead to poor class performance. With this, parents should understand that they should help their child with their homework in order to support them with their academics. Additionally, homework, in essence, also helps in teaching students proactiveness, initiative, and responsibility to finish tasks without the teacher’s supervision.

5 ways for parents to help their child with homework

Before we talk about the ways parents can help with their child’s homework, it’s important to understand that helping them doesn’t mean doing the homework for them. This wouldn’t help the child in any way and will make them rely on their parents instead. With this in mind, let’s talk about some tips and ways for parents to help their child with their homework.

1. Build a homework schedule

The first step in helping your child answer their homework is to make sure they answer it. This means that, as parents, you have to set boundaries and expect the child to actually do and finish their homework. Many times, parents may leave their child alone to do their homework. While it teaches them independence and confidence in their skills, this shouldn’t be a regular occurrence.

Parents should set a time for the student to answer their homework and follow it. There should be a routine to be followed. You can even involve the child in the process of making a schedule so they can also contribute and still have time for their own interests and hobbies outside of their studies.

As homework can get intimidating and dull, parents should also create a welcoming atmosphere when helping their child. No amount of screaming from the parents or crying from the child would finish the homework faster or benefit the child. If the environment is peaceful and shows support, the child will be more inclined to finish their homework willingly, and once they stick to their schedule, they will get used to it and complete tasks easily.

2. Limit screen time

There are a great number of times when parents blame their child’s “laziness” in doing homework to be the cause as to why they can’t submit them on time. However, the reason for this also stems from the amount of time children spend on their phones, watching television, or gaming.

As stated in the previous tip, if there is a set schedule stick to it. That means that when it’s time for homework, there shouldn’t be any more protests with taking time off their gaming, television, or phone screens. Aside from helping the child practice discipline and organization, there would also be less whining on their part as they already know when their time with their devices is up.

It’s important for parents to be firm and strict with this rule. Again, as related in the previous tip, making a homework schedule or routine will help enforce this on your child. Discuss with the child what goes on their routine after they come home from school. For example, the routine can include them having a healthy snack when they get home, do their homework and assignment, and maybe help with household chores like preparing dinner or cleaning up after. Once they’ve completed all their tasks and have extra time, then, they can use their devices. Help them understand that screen time can be used to pass time, but not a necessity.

As the child gets older and starts to help out at home more, they will also start to understand the importance of proper time management and discipline, as well as the weight of responsibility and dependability that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

3. Create a workspace for them,

For children, one of the common enemy parents have is their short attention span, meaning students get distracted easily. This can also be true when they are doing their homework. Some students may spend more time looking for their pencils or coloring materials than when they are actually making their project or starting with their homework. And there can be times when during their search, they can again get distracted and will actively set them back from the time they should allot for the homework.

Through keeping a well-stocked and organized workspace or study area for them, parents can save the child time searching for things or other unnecessary distractions. As such, since their stuff are all prepared for their homework, it can also lessen the stress as they can easily finish the homework with their supplies within reach. Then, they can move on to other tasks.

Because a workspace is important for students, it’s also advisable that the working area should also be complete and come with the supplies needed by students. Parents can help the child in organizing the supplies such as pencils, crayons, pens, erasers, highlighters, rulers, and many more. It would even be better if they are filed together or kept in a storage box or organizer.

4. Hire a tutor

A child struggling with their homework is common and something that can be inevitable at times. There are also many reasons why this happens. It could be that they haven’t understood the lesson in school and have trouble applying it to their homework. It could also be because they are not confident in their skills and are apprehensive in answering questions and problems alone. Sometimes, students get so distracted that they lose motivation to finish their tasks.

If you are concerned with your child’s performance in school or think they could use help in their homework, the child may benefit if parents consider hiring a tutor for them, especially in subjects they are particularly having trouble with.

There are many benefits in hiring a home tutor aside from homework help. Tutors are experts in their subject fields and teach students in ways that fit their learning style. As such, there may also be instances where parents can’t help their child, such as when they are busy or when they, too, don’t understand the lesson. A good tutor can not only help your child with answering their problems and homework, they can also help the student improve and get them back on track with their studies.

For instance, if the child is struggling with his Math homework, particularly in algebraic expressions, a home tutor who’s an expert in Math, can come in and help them understand the topic. If the student has trouble with Chemistry, a home tutor can use other methods aside from the ones used in school to help the child understand concepts better and also apply it in real-life.

By hiring a tutor, it doesn’t mean that it’s cheating their way to academic success. This just means that they have extra help for them to better understand the lessons and topics they are learning in school. This not only leads to better grades for your child but also a boost in confidence as home tuition gives them an insight that they can also keep up with their peers.

If you are interested in hiring a home tutor for your child to help them with their homework, check out FamilyTutor, Singapore’s leading home tuition agency. We offer over 200 subjects to students ranging from pre-school to even beyond university level. With our highly skilled and qualified home tutors, we guarantee the best quality education for your child without breaking the bank.

5. Let them get enough rest

Singaporean students spend more time doing homework than their global counterparts. With too much homework and school activities, many students may suffer from dreaded burnouts. Additionally, parents can’t also expect the child to immediately work on their assignments after class. As stated in the previous tips, it’s important for students to be also given time to ease their way to the next task. Parents can also support their child and relieve them from too much stress by encouraging them to do things they also enjoy such as their hobbies and interest.

In addition, children should also be getting ample amount of sleep to help their growing bodies and minds. Sleep gives them time to rest and recharge, as well as keep their minds healthy.

Carelle

Carelle is a teacher who has been through the ups and downs of the teacher and learner life. She wishes for every learner to gain educational satisfaction that will help embody the people they want to be in the future.

Ways to Help Your Child with Their Homework

Why is homework important?

5 ways for parents to help their child with homework

1. Build a homework schedule

2. Limit screen time

3. Create a workspace for them,

4. Hire a tutor

5. Let them get enough rest

Carelle

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