On Facebook, a friend asked the following question:
And do what you have to do to get your daughter a good education wherever it is! 'Cause it's pay now, or pay big time later!
Even though the school year is not over with, I can say two out of three children are going to be on the honor roll. The third one is struggling a little because she keeps forgetting to turn in her complete homework, but we're working on that. That's a big thing for a single busy parent and I have worked darn hard to get my children to understand how important education is. That is our number one thing (and then chores around the house, of course).
There are always the simple things a parent can do to get a great education from the school system and your child:
Encourage reading is the number one thing. Read to your child when they are young and encourage your child to read once they are old enough to read on their own.
Once they are in school, parents can do the following:
Talk with your child's teacher to know what the teacher is to expect and what is to be learned throughout the school year.
Have a calendar to display test dates and make a folder to include their yearly syllabus as well.
Attend all parent conferences. Busy? Then attend at least the middle of semester conferences. Don't wait until the end of each semester because those grades really can't be corrected.
Homework: stress the importance of doing homework as soon as the child gets home. No snack, no tv, no internet (unless its homework related and then check on them to make sure they are Facebooking), and no games until this is all done. Make sure they have an area to do their homework. Make this a ritual from the time they start school. No homework sent home. Insist they do twenty minutes of reading.
Be aware of your state's curriculum standard. Contact your Department of Education in your state and download every year your child's curriculum standard. When attending conference's with the teacher, make sure that they are meeting these standards and asks the teacher what more can YOU do at home to get your child to this standard.
Teachers love involved parents and though you may not have time to volunteer at the school, they know you take great pride in your child's education.
Other things to help your children are:
Take a interest in your child's education. Let them know you want them to go to college. Give them the reasons as to why. The economy is bad. In the future in order to get a good job, one will need at least an Associate or more to earn a good legitimate living. I was so proud of my son, when his sixth grade teacher asked him where he would like to go to college and he said "MIT" as if he already had was on his way the very next week.
Know your child's weakness and find tutors to help them immediately.
Check book bags every day for children between ages five and ten. I've even done random checks of my children up to the age of thirteen. (Be careful about sticking your hand straight to the bottom because they might come out sticky from something they forgot to eat. Yuck)
Set aside time on the weekend to work on the weaknesses or just to be studious. Don't allow them to wake up to morning cartoons. Open a book to read.
Depending on your child's age, regulate digital time (tv, games, internet etc) and bedtimes. Under ten, children need to be in bed by 8 p.m. Over ten through fourteen, children need to be in bed before 9.30pm. (Although on Monday night, when Heroes come on, I let my two oldest stay up and watch it as long as they are getting good grades and no behavior problems in school). 15 thru 18, everyone is their room by ten and no lights are on by eleven. Some will give the excuse they want to watch the news for current event or social studies projects, but I tell them to wake up at five a.m. to catch it.
More ways to encourage good education:
Don't just do trips to the movies. Do museums, science centers, educational events going on around the city. (Some of these can be free as well). During the summer, send your child to a center or church to get them out of the house. If you have to do movies, make an education trip about it. Pick movies about history or creative documentaries to encourage knowledge of other things and not just the world going on around them.
Watching the news is also another tip to encourage your children to escalate at school. Make it a learning experience.
PRACTICE WHAT YOU PREACH. If you want your child to read, YOU READ TOO! Newspapers, books and so forth.
HAVE DICTIONARIES, THESAURUSES, and other educational references around the house. Make sure your child is aware of sites like Wikipedia.org and even donate to these sites for making material to help your child out for free.
Write things. This may sound odd, but remember the 2nd form of communication is writing. Plus, in higher paying jobs, you do a lot of writing before actually doing the job itself. Doctors and lawyers write reports, summons, and so forth more on their job than actually doing surgery or being in the courtroom. From the time your child can hold a crayon or pencil, have them draw or write things. Encourage writing the alphabet very early in life and even if they are resistant to it, have them write stories or journal as much as possible. (At least once a week.)
In the summer, get the next grade level lessons. Any teacher store has it, or on Amazon.com, you can get used ones. Some have a little writing in it, or even some things highlighted, but you're only paying a quarter or penny for it and it's so worth. Give your child a page out of it every day and do a weekly check on it.
Your attitude to the importance of school greatly affects the outcome of your child's success.
I always tell my children, if I have to work an 8 hour job for the household then their job is to go to school and their report cards are like their paychecks. The report cards tell me they are doing their jobs well. I need to know that if I'm spending 70% of my check on them and the household and they get to partake of the household because they aren't earning their keep if they aren't.
Your child needs to know that school is very important not only to you, but to them. I'm often reminding them that they are not getting good grades for me, but for themselves. Their good grades and their attitude toward learning determine how they're future is going to be. Learn, Learn, Learn and never stop learning.
And finally let them know, they came in their world with all the tools they need in order to be successful and "A mind is a terrible thing to waste."
I hope these tips help. If you are reading this and have more tips, please comment!
Corinne Frontiero
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