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.
Tip #2 – Build Up Their Self Esteem
It’s important that you figure out your child’s style of learning. Kids don’t all learn in the very same way. Some kids learn by watching, others learn by listening, while others learn in a hands on manner. Unless you are able to help them within their learning style, you probably won’t get far. So, figure out their learning style and make use of it to help them improve their grades.
Tip #4 – Help Your Child Set Goals
Helping your child set goals is important as well. Don’t expect your child to go from a failing grade to an A+ overnight. Have them set goals that they can achieve, such as getting a B on their next test or making sure that all their homework is turned in on time. As your child is able to set goals and meet them, they’ll have more confidence in their ability to achieve good grades.
Tip #5 – Work with the Teachers on Problem Areas
If you find out that your child has some problem areas in school, work with the teachers on these areas. Keep communication open between you and the teacher. Together you’ll be able to come up with the best plans for your child. Your child’s teachers may even be able to give you some advice on ways to bring up the grades and can even provide you with some teaching tools so you can provide your child with extra help at home.
Tip #6 – Reward Positive Performance
When your child performs well in school, make sure that you reward them. Come up with a good rewards system for your child. Perhaps offer rewards for good grades on a test. Consider a larger reward if they bring home better grades on their report card. A good rewards system can motivate your child to do better. After all, most people do find a reward motivating. Just make sure that the rewards are not too difficult for your child to earn or they may get discouraged and stop trying.
Tip #7 – Make Sure Their Homework is Getting Completed
Many times kids end up getting bad grades because they aren’t turning in their homework. This can occur for a variety of reasons. In some cases your child could just be forgetting to turn in the work; however, some kids don’t do their homework because they are uncomfortable with the task and are afraid of failure. It’s important that you encourage your child to turn in homework and that you make sure that the homework is getting done every single day. This can mean the difference between a failing and passing grade in many cases.
Final Tip – Teach Your Child Simple Organizational Skills
Can’t forget this one. Perhaps one of the best things that you can do to help your child get better grades is to teach them some simple organizational skills. Simple time management and organizational skills can really make a huge different in your kids’ schoolwork. Teach your child to write down homework so they won’t forget, have them review homework and place it in their backpack to take to school. Also, make sure that they are managing their time while they are out of school to get their homework done, while still having some time for fun as well. Not only will these skills help them to improve their grades, but these skills are going to be very valuable throughout their entire life as well.
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