We understand that it must be a herculean task for most of the parents to gettheir child to sit down to complete his/her homework after spending a long day at school. Most parents complain that the moment they mention the word homework, children starts to roll their eyes, groan, and make a million excuses. Yes, it is indeed difficult to make children understand that they need to revise the chapters and complete the homework if they want to progress academically. All of the pleadings and scolding can fall on deaf ears if children find the very idea of homework to be frustrating and boring. However, makingyour childrensit and complete their homework willingly does not have to be such an impossible task to achieve if youcan turn it into a fun activity.
Here are some of the smart ideas that will ensure your kids no longer have to be goaded into completing their homework.
Do not sequester or scoldthe child
Scolding and sequestering will just make the child lose interest in doing the homework. Telling him/her to go to their room and not come out until they complete their homework does more harm than any good. In such instances, children generally try to finish the homework hurriedly and half-heartedly which defeats ourwhole purpose of giving homework in the first place. The better idea is to keep them engaged in their work by making them sit at a place where you can see and interact with them. If the child prefers to do the homework in his/her room, check up on him/her at regular intervals to see whether the child needs some help or a break from work.
Track progress by offering rewards
Set up a reward system to be utilized as a positive reinforcement to help make homework seem less like a chore. Create some goals with inputs from your child and match them with proper rewards to give him/her something to look forward to. For instance, whenever they complete an assignment on time, provide them with a star and place it on a chart. Let them pick out a reward like watching a movie, or getting some ice cream,if they are able to complete the work neatly and on time.However, it is your responsibility to make the kid understand the greater goal of completing the homework so that he/she does not see studies as a means to earn rewards.
Play some fun, educational games
You can turn the homework assignment into a fun game to keep your child motivated towards studying. There are several ways to put this strategy to work likecreating flashcards to work on vocabulary or memory games to work on chapters. If your child is working with math concepts, try using candies and chocolates to help with the numbers. They will be more inclined to solve the division and subtraction problem when they get to eat a few sweets. If you cannot come up with fun ways to turn the assignments into the game, try to play some brain teasers like scrabble, bingo, or chess as a warm-up before starting on with the homework.
Be a study buddy to your kid
Your kid will be better motivated to work hard when he/she sees you working with him/her on completing the homework. Try and sit with your kid even if you are doing other chores like sending emails or making lists. Children love playing the teacher, and so you can ask him/her to explain the lessons to you as you listen with the rapt attention of a student. This way he/she will be recalling and revising the chapter naturally without you having to force him/her into doing it.
We, at the K.R. Mangalam School, one of the best international schools in Gurgaon, understand the reluctance of students in sitting with their homework after they reach home. This is why we aim to complete most of the chapters and assignments within the class itself so that the burden of homework can be reduced significantly. We only ask our pupils to revise and go through the chapters once they reach home just to recollect the facts learned in class. Our experienced and dedicated teachers use audio-visual aids and real-life applications to help the children imbibe the knowledge rather than mugging it up. We have noticed that it helps in better retention of the lessons and no assignment seems too difficult to complete when the concepts are ingrained in the young minds.
We, at KRMS, believe that attaining the overall development of a child is only made possible through the continued efforts of the school and the parents. With that in mind, we make sure to keep the parents informed about the progress of the child and discuss ways to help in their betterment. Our aim is not just to make each child academically brilliant but also to ensure that the skill set and natural flairs of each child are developed to the optimum to help them shine bright in future.