by Joy Burgess
Self-Esteem & Teamwork are two Benefits of Extracurricular Activities
There are many high schools out there today that provide a plethora of extracurricular activities. Some occur before school, some after school, and a few may even take place on the weekends. While some parents are a bit dubious about their children participating in extracurricular activities, these activities actually bring with them many benefits. Allowing your child to get involved in extracurricular activities at school is a wise choice, and it can be very important in helping them to develop many working skills, people skills, and more. Of course, while a few activities is a great idea, there is a point where you need to draw a line. Here is a closer look at some of the benefits of extracurricular activities for your child, and how you can know when these activities become too much.
The Benefits of Extracurricular Activities
If you aren't sure whether or not you should let your high school student get involved in extracurricular activities, you definitely need to consider all the benefits that come along with these activities. Here is a look at just a few benefits your teen will enjoy if you allow them to get involved with these activities.
Benefit #1 – Learning Time Management and Prioritizing – One great benefit of your teen being involved in extracurricular activities is that they will learn about time management and prioritizing things in their life. As adults we get very used to juggling a variety of different tasks and commitments. Our teens need to learn how to do this as well, and getting involved in these activities can give them some practice at it.
Benefit #2 – Getting Involved in Diverse Interests – Getting involved in extracurricular activities also allows students to get involved in diverse interests. It is important for your teen to be very diverse in their interests. These activities allow them to explore various interests that they may have.
Benefit #3 – Learning About Long Term Commitments – Teens learn about long term commitments when they are involved in extracurricular activities as well, which is another excellent benefit. When the join one of the activities or clubs, they commit themselves to that activity for a period of time. If they don't hold up to their end of the deal, no doubt they'll hear about it from their peers and perhaps even teachers. Learning to take on commitments is important, and these activities can teach your child this important lesson.Read More on Extracurricular School Activities and the Benefits
When your child brings home that report card showing grades that are less than great, sometimes it's difficult to know what to do. Do you act like it doesn't matter, have a long discussion with your child about the importance of grades, or automatically punish them for having bad grades? While all of these may seem to be tempting options, it's important that you actually work with your child to help them start improving their grades. Bad grades can be a result of a variety of problems.
Your child may have trouble paying attention, they may be a bit lazy and may not be doing their work, or they may be having trouble grasping the concepts that they are learning in school. No matter the reason that your child is dealing with bad grades, here are some helpful tips for parents that will help you work with your child to improve their grades.
Tip #1 – Remember Your Child May Not Learn Like You Do
The first thing you need to do is remember that your child may not learn like you do. You may find math easy and have a very analytical mind, but your child may have a hard time grasping these concepts. If you try to help your child with the idea that they learn in the same way that you do, your attempts to help them succeed will probably end in disaster.
Read More on 7 Tips for Improving Kids Grades
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by Angie Shiflett
Teaching your child how to effectively communicate with teachers is an essential in today’s educational environment. While the school has a set curriculum that it follows to educate your child, you also have the responsibility of teaching your children certain things. Then, there are those lessons that should be mutual between your home as well as the school. An example of one of these lessons is that of communicating effectively. In order to ensure the success of your child, it is important that you know the basics when it comes to teaching your child how to effectively communicate with teachers.
First and foremost, your child needs to understand that the teacher that they have is an adult and should be respected as such. Remind them that it is important to be polite and courteous at all times, even if they are frustrated or even angry at themselves, someone else, or the teacher directly. By doing this, you are teaching your child to carefully guard their words and truly think about what they want to say before they say it. Children who fail to carefully consider their words may put up a wall between them and their teachers, which can actually hinder successful communication. Read More on Improving Child-Teacher Communication
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by Angie Shiflett
Many homeschooling families face the challenge of teaching their child to read. While this is a very exciting time in both the life of the child and the parent, it can present some obstacles. If you are reading this article, you have probably already passed the stage of teaching your child the alphabet and how to recognize letters. Chances are, your child can even write a few letters – possibly even their name. Now, it is time to move on to the ever-popular sight words. You will learn important information regarding these words, and how to implement exciting games when teaching sight words. Whether or not you are a homeschool parent these games can be a great way to help your child learn to read.Read More on Exciting Games for Teaching Sight Words
Filed under Reading Skills by
There are a number of advantages to homeschooling your child. One of the main advantages to educating your child in the comfort of your home is that you can appropriately instill values in the homeschool classroom. You no longer must worry about the “morals” your child is obtaining from their peer, their teachers, and other faculty and staff members in the traditional classroom setting. Here, you will learn some important information regarding the process of instilling values in the homeschool classroom. Read More on Instilling Values in the Homeschool Classroom
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by Ann Bowers
The current teaching of mathematics is often weak in traditional schools. Children are taught math facts and are expected to learn them through rote memory drills. Often children are expected to complete worksheets and textbook exercises, rather than engage in math projects in which math and science concepts are discovered and applied. This results in a lack of understanding of math concepts and leads to poor preparation for the study of math at the university level.
Why is math teaching so poor? Sometimes teachers do not understand math well so they rely on textbooks and drills. Some teachers and parents believe that math is merely the memorization of calculation rules and basic facts. Teachers and parents often had no opportunities to explore math and learn concepts through real-life experiences. Poor grades or negative comments may have made math something to be avoided. Also, children who don’t master the basics fall quickly behind and give up trying to learn math. It’s very important that children are assessed regularly to make sure that they are mastering what is being taught and can use it appropriately.
Filed under Homeschooling, Math by
by Stacey Schifferdecker
Childhood moves at a much faster pace now than it did when we were kids, and music lessons are just one example. While we may have started piano lessons in late elementary school, kids now toddle up to the piano bench for lessons when they are still in preschool. When is the right age for music lessons and are condemning your child to a lifetime of musical mediocrity if you start too late?
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Many children have already started school, some, like my kids start next week right after Labor Day. Many kids too will be starting a new school. You may have great reasons for moving — a much better job, better schools, closer to family, etc. But whatever your reason, moving is almost always hard on your children. In fact, Cincinnati pediatrician Dr. Mona Mansour found in a study that children who change schools frequently are more likely to have both academic and behavioral issues. Fortunately, you can help your children adjust to their new schools and make the transition easier. Here are a few ideas.
Read More on Back to School – Are You Starting A New School This Year?
School time is upon us again, and that means tests! I don’t remember having tests until late elementary school, but even first and second graders may have spelling tests now. And let’s not forget the spring-time ritual of standardized tests! Whether your children breeze through tests or struggle a little more, you can help them prepare for tests and make the whole test-taking experience more positive.
Preparing for the test…
The main key to preparing for tests is to know the work and study ahead of time. Get your child a planner so she knows when tests are and won’t forget about them. Cramming the night before will just lead to “information overload” and make your child nervous (not to mention overly tired the morning of the test). Many teachers give study guides so your children should know exactly what the test will cover and have all the information they need to study in one place. You can also use the study guide to quiz your child. Read More on School Time – Helping your child prepare for tests
Filed under Homework Skills, Learning Skills by
You may have great reasons for moving — a much better job, better schools, closer to family, etc. But whatever your reason, moving is almost always hard on your children. In fact, Cincinnati pediatrician Dr. Mona Mansour found in a study that children who change schools frequently are more likely to have both academic and behavioral issues. Fortunately, you can help your children adjust to their new schools and make the transition easier.
Filed under Education by
It can be hard to tell if your son or daughter is having problems at school until reports cards come out. Most schools offer only minimal information about coursework and expectations and of course talking about school may not be something that our kids want to do with you every day. This makes it difficult for parents to judge how well their children is mastering the material.
Here are a few ways which can get involved that will help you check up on your child's schoolwork without having to wait for report-card time:
- Never be afraid to talk to your child's teacher. Schedule a meeting if need be. At teacher parenting conferences let the teacher know they are free to contact you if there are any problems or issues. The key is to get involved.
- Another way to get involved is to join your local PTA. There are a number of benefits, not only for you, but for your child. By joining the Parent Teachers Association you know only get a voice in what is going on locally, you get a chance to connect and build relationships with other parents and teachers. Here is some more information on the excellent benefits of joining the PTA.
- Talk to your child about her classwork. Does she feel confident? Does she say whether she is keeping up or feels behind the rest of the kids?
- Take notice of any comments that the teacher is giving on the papers.
- Check the work that your child brings home each day. You may have to dig through crumpled papers at the bottom of her backpack. Ask what assignments her teacher is giving the class.
- Most of the time the teacher will send home progress reports in between report cards. Are you getting them? If not then be sure to keep up with your child's reports from now on.
