Clever Mom Ways to Improve Child’s Study Habits
In order to perform well in school, children have to develop good home and study habits. How he acts at home reflects how he does at school — if he sits all day watching TV during weekends, he’s likely to show the same lazy attitude towards his school work.
As a parent, it is our job to push our children to the best of their abilities. Making a few simple changes to his lifestyle will boost his performance in school. Here are 3 effective ways to help improve your child’s study habits:
Keep him busy
It’s true that we all have lazy days, just wanting to be in bed all day or on the couch with snacks, watching TV shows. While this is acceptable once in a while, it’s not ideal to be the norm for children.
According to Mayo Clinic, kids who are in front of the TV for more than 2 hours a day are more likely to have health problems, behavioral difficulties and impaired performance in school.
So, don’t be a couch potato! Keep yourself and your little one busy by playing at the park, playing educational games and such.
Encourage him to engage in physical activities
Most young kids love being active, that’s because they have so much energy! Put that energy into good use by letting him explore and try different physical activities. Not all kids are into sports, but you can at least do some encouragement (be sure to be active, too!) — keep trying different things and he’s bound to find something that he enjoys.
If your child finds a sport that he grows to love, he’ll learn more about goal-setting and focus, which will be translated into his studies. So get out there and expose your child to a range of sports and physical activities — let him have the freedom of choosing what he wants to try!
Instill a good reading habit
Strong reading skills start at home. From you reading to your toddler bed time stories every night to him choosing his own books to read for fun, a good reading habit is an essential component to a kid’s success in school. Encourage reading to be part of his bed time and play time routines — be sure to allow him to choose what books he’d want to read!
The abovementioned tips, on top of the daily allotted time to study and do homework, can help boost your child’s interest and performance in school! Try these effective ways to improve your child’s study habits!
10 Essential Safety Rules for Kids
All parents want to keep the kids safe. But, as children grow older, you can’t be with them all the time. Children need their freedom so that they can learn and grow. Whilst you cannot watch over your kids 24/7, you can teach rules to follow that will help keep them safe. Here are ten basic safety rules that kids need to learn at an early age.
1. Remember Your Address and Phone Number
If children memorize their home address and their parent’s phone number, they can share that information with someone in an emergency. Kids of any age can wander off and get lost. So, the earlier they have this information memorized, the better.
2. Don’t Walk Off on Your Own
Very young children need to have strict boundaries. They shouldn’t walk off on their own at all. As they get older, this rule may change to become don’t go anywhere without telling an adult. If a young child needs to go somewhere, they should be accompanied by an adult.
3. Don’t Talk to Strangers
This is a basic rule that all kids should be taught. Don’t talk to strangers, don’t get in a stranger’s car, and don’t accept any gifts from strangers.
4. If You Get Lost, Stay Where you Are
If kids get separated from their parents, the best thing they can do is stay where they are. That will make it easier for the parents to find the child again. The most common places that children get lost is in stores. In this case, kids should understand that it’s OK to get help from a store assistant or from a mom with kids.
5. No Playing with Fire
Kids are naturally curious, but it is important that they learn that playing with fire is not allowed. Matches, cigarette lighters, and flammable materials should be kept out of the reach of children. Even if you do that at home, kid’s still need to learn how dangerous playing with fire is.
6. Don’t Climb Over any Fences
Children need to be taught that fences are there for a reason. If they are playing ball and the ball goes over a fence, they should ask an adult to retrieve it for them. Climbing fences can be dangerous. What’s on the other side of the fence may be dangerous too.
7. No One is Allowed to Touch You
You can teach children at an early age that secret touching is not allowed. This doesn’t need to be too descriptive or frightening. It can be a simple rule that adults are not allowed to touch kids’ bodies. Kid’s should also understand that it is OK to tell their parents if an adult does do something inappropriate.
8. Know What 911 is For
Children should be taught how to dial 911 in an emergency. However, they should also be taught that 911 is only to be used for real emergencies. There have been many cases where young children who have been taught how to use 911 have saved an adult’s life.
9. Don’t Put Any Personal Information Online
Very young children should be supervised when they go online. Older kids should be taught not to put any personal information online and never agree to meet anyone in person that they have met online.
10. Trust Your Instinct
If it doesn’t feel right, don’t do it. Even if your friends are doing it. Children have gut feelings when something is wrong. They should be taught that it’s OK to say no if they feel uncomfortable about something.
You can start teaching children the basic safety rules from as early as three years of age. As well as these rules, it is also important to teach kids that can always talk to you. Encourage open communication and honesty. It’s important that a child knows they can always talk to their parents if anything at all is worrying them.
8 Tips to Setting Up a Fun Child Study Zone
Most parents realize that success in school leads to success in life. So how can parents encourage children to love to learn? Consider setting up a “Child Study Zone” in your home.
These 8 tips will help you create a colorful and fun study zone that will encourage kids to tackle that homework so they can tackle life as an adult!
1. Special Place
Prepare a “special place” for your child to do his/her homework. Try to find a place (even a tiny corner) that is quiet and away from the TV and other distractions. Make it a “special place” just for them. Customize the space with fun colors on the wall, dressed up desk accessories, etc. It doesn’t have to cost a lot. Get creative!
2. “Fun”ctionality
Provide a good desk, chair and filing space. Purchase (or make) creative bulletin boards for class schedules, deadlines, sports schedules, etc. Use fun colors, stickers and other cute kid embellishments. Paint the furniture in bright, attractive colors.
3. Provide Desk Accessories
Provide appropriate desk accessories. Use your imagination and creativity. Contact paper cut out in cute shapes and clean soup or coffee cans can make great places for pens, pencils, rulers, crayons, etc. Recycle letterhead boxes with paint or wallpaper scraps for places to file paperwork.
4. Creative Filing System
Create a filing system with your child so he/she knows where papers are supposed to go. Color code for “fun”ctionality. Blue for math, red for history, green for sports, etc. Double-sided tape and cork squares are an inexpensive way to provide places to hang art, sports ribbons, etc. Consider a white board calendar. They are great for homework reminders, project due dates, etc.
5. Color Their World
Kids love color and aren’t afraid to play with shapes. Paint is cheap, so paint the walls and furniture in bright, fun colors your child loves. Purchase inexpensive colorful plastic storage bins and boxes (or check out yard sales, thrift stores, etc.). Make their space as fun and positive as you can. If you (or someone you know) is handy with power tools, try making a child-size desk. You can cut wood into fun shapes (try a kidney bean shape for a desk). Make sure it is appropriately sized for your child.
6. Reference Materials
Have reference materials on hand. A lot of information can be found on-line these days, but it never hurts to have a dictionary, and other reference material on hand. Put maps on the wall, find an inexpensive globe. Make a list of child-friendly sites your child can access on the computer for researching school projects.
7. Computers
Computers are a must for kids in America today. Even those who cannot afford a home computer, can utilize the public library. If you have a home computer, make sure to have parental safeguards installed. The best advice for keeping kids safe on the Internet is . . . keep the computers out of the child’s bedroom and place it in a more public space. Know where your child is going in the internet. Talk about safety concerns. If you can afford a new computer or laptop, consider buying one in a fun color.
8. Set a Good Example
Children learn what they live. If they hear you grumbling about learning, what will they learn? Remember little ears hear e-v-e-r-y darn thing! Talk positively about school and the learning experience, be supportive of the teacher, volunteer at PTA and other school functions. Read to your child and let him/her read to you. Share the learning experience together. Share your wisdom with your child!
By following these 8 simple tips, you will create a positive environment for your child to grow and learn to love learning — this will set the stage for a positive future!
