Helpful Tips

Tips & Tricks

Here are some quick tips & tricks you can use to help your child succeed.

1. Ask your child to see his/her agenda every day. This is where students write their assignments & important dates for tests, etc. Make writing in the agenda mandatory for your child. Looking at it each day trains your child to look at his/her agenda daily.

2. Read with your child. Research tells us that the more a child reads and is read to, the stronger the cognitive capacity becomes.

3. Play games with your child that involve memory. This strengthens a child's working memory. Poor working memory is one of the most pronounced symptoms of a learning difficulty. Anything that can strengthen memory will help your child succeed in school.

4. Set goals for your child. Youngsters tend to be motivated more when they have something to work toward. Talk with your child to determine what would be something special your child would like to work toward. This can be either an item the child wants or an activity or event the child enjoys. Once you have determined the "something special" your child would like to work toward, decide on a reasonable goal. Choose something your child struggles with, such as completing homework, mastering vocabulary words, or a good grade in a class your child struggles with. Set the goal and post it somewhere visible to your child. Lastly, make a plan to reach the goal, such as "I will study my vocabulary for 20 minutes every day" and post that with the goal to serve as a reminder.

Don't forget to READ, READ, READ every day!

Reading does more than just make kids practice the skill of reading, it also helps students learn how to think critically, problem solve, remember facts, and predict outcomes. Essentially, reading is a workout for the thinking/problem solving part of the brain. The more kids read, the more exercise the brain is getting. Find books with subjects that interest your child and provide a specific time of day where all electronics are turned off and everyone is reading. 60 minutes per day is ideal, but even 30 minutes per day can make a difference. Attach a reward to reading to motivate your child to stick with it or create a family challenge. Have fun with it!