101 Tips to Help Your Kids Get Through the School Year - Dr. Harvey Sisler

Attention Parents!  You can do a great deal to help your children achieve excellent grades and find success in school.  Listening, reading, and math skills are all areas where you can play an important role in your child's development and they are all easy to implement. You can even play a role in motivating your children to do their best.  Another interesting point is that our children do not all learn in the same manner.  There are several different approaches that children take to reach their learning goals.  Even the concept of intelligence is thought of quite differently in today's world.

There are certain remedies, suggestions and techniques that may help to succeed in the school year. These techniques, remedies, or suggestions are offered in the hope that they will provide solutions to existing conditions and improve what needs to be improved.

How to develop good listening skills: How many of us are good listeners - I mean really good listeners. It is difficult to become a good listener. Why? Because most of us are involved in our own problems - problems that constantly prey upon us. There are remedies and techniques that are designed to make us better listeners.

1. Establish eye contact when you speak.
2. Slow down your rate of speech.
3. Use vocabulary and sentences that are easy to understand
4. Speak clearly and if necessary, repeat or rephrase sentences.
5. Use demonstration if needed
6. Model good listening habits.

Home work: There are number of ways parents can help their children cope and flourish with homework assignments. Gnerally attempt to provide a time, quiet place to study, and assistance if and when needed. Establish a daily routine and scheduled time. Never ever use homework as punishment. Attemp to provide positive support and praise for completion. Be available to provide non-critical assistance. Provide praise and support. Be a good listener.

Reading: Encouraging children to read is the single most important thing parents can do to insure children's success in school. There are many ways parents can contribute to enhance children's reading skills.

1. Read to and with your child.
2. Set goals for reading: weekly; monthly
3. Take them to the library
4. Provide a variety of books
5. Contact their teacher for vocabulary and spelling lists.

Math skills: Math skills are vital to so many functions of daily living that its importance cannot be minimised. Problem solving related to real-life situations has become more prevalent these days. Engage your children in these activities. Measurement skills, geometry, guessing and comparing to actual amounts can help improve a child's thinking and problem solving skills.

Multiple Intelligences: This theory propsoed by Howard Gardner, a cognitive psychologist at Harvard University susggest that everyone is born with seven intelligences but that each child has his/her own set of strengths and weaknesses. When teaching it is possible to tap into every intelligence and learning style. Creative learning experiences will bring about development in varying degrees, depending upon existing abilities and talents.

Motivation and Learning: Parents can provide an enthusiastic and positive framework for your child's learning. Show enthusiasm and interest in various academic areas of your child. This will have a positive effect on them.

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