When it comes to motivating your child to get work done, some parents can be more successful with rewards while others may become more involved in the process.
Especially if your child is making the transition from Kindergarten to Primary School, it will require them to have more discipline to make time to study and complete homework, which will be a good habit to adopt. If you have not had much success in the homework department, here are some ways to motivate your child.
How to Encourage Your Child to Do Homework
1. Make a plan
For starters, if your child is a Primary 1 or 2 student, they may not have as much homework compared to Upper Primary levels. It can be a struggle to persuade your child to do it when they assume it is playtime outside of school hours. With that in mind, it is always good to start teaching your child to plan their daily schedule, an essential skill that can help them excel.
Start by giving your child the choice to choose when to do their schoolwork. It can be between 7 pm to 8 pm on a weekday, for instance. On days where your child does not have assignments to complete, the time can be used for quiet reading, catching up with what was taught earlier at school or preparing for the next lesson. With expectations set, homework time will naturally become a part of their daily routine.
2. Find out the reason
On the other hand, if your child is a Primary 3 to 6 student, you may want to find out what’s preventing them from getting homework completed on time. For example, if your child is not doing well in the subject, this could make them less motivated. By first understanding the reason, you can then encourage your child to focus on learning from their mistakes, keep trying and not give up.
3. Remove study distractions
That being said, make sure your child has a conducive environment to focus on schoolwork. During study time, it could be easy for your child to delay finishing it with distractions around them. To support your child, set the stage for productivity by switching off the television and limiting access to their phone. That way, your child can stay on track in ticking off the homework to-dos.
4. Praise your child
Finally, compliments like “You’ve worked hard!” and “Good job!” can inspire confidence and reinforce positive behaviour. Apart from giving small rewards, your praise and encouragement can help prevent the resistance to doing homework in the long run. This can also motivate your child to continue striving harder on their own and become independent learners.
Throughout the curriculum at MindChamps, our lessons can guide your child to cultivate good study habits that will last a lifetime – including doing homework. Here, our Champs get a head start to achieving future academic success beyond primary school. Get in touch with us today to learn more about our enrichment classes.