With South Africa in lockdown and parents having to take responsibility for their children’s schoolwork, Ponnie Moodley, director of Nkowa Education, takes a look at how parents can help their children stay on top of their schoolwork.
Begin with goal setting:
Beginning with the end in mind, sets your child up for success.
• Formulate a to-do list.
• Include school assignments and home management issues and chores.
• Having a general family list and individual lists will ensure everyone contributes to keeping your home organised.
• Prioritise tasks from most important to least important.
• Review and update your list at the end of the day or week, while delegating new tasks if and when needed.
Establish a daily routine:
Children need consistency where they can predict what is expected of them on a daily basis.
• It facilitates quick transition between one activity and another.
• It sets a tone to instill self-discipline and self-drive.
• Follow the normal school timetable and roster as closely as possible to help things run smoothly during this time of uncertainty.
• Include a variety of activities that target physical, emotional and mental health activities.
• Make changes and adapt the routine to the needs of your family and individual members.
Formulate a self-discipline plan:
Aim to make your child self-disciplined where they take charge of their own education.
• Help your child to be intrinsically motivated by encouraging and praising them.
• List the maximum of five realistic expectations and have them posted on a wall for constant referral.
• Discuss incentives and rewards that are awarded at the end of the week as opposed to on a daily basis.
• Make it visual and fun for young children, in order for them to be motivated and inspired.
• Include school and household expectations that are tangible, realistic and age appropriate.
Address the needs of the whole child:
The physical, psychological, emotional, social and cultural development will impact the academic development of a child.
• Establish a sense of community and be aware of cultural nuances, accents and body language.
• Giving clear boundaries, including what are acceptable and unacceptable behaviour, will set the tone for family life.
• Model positive verbal and non-verbal behaviour, as children mirror adults’ mannerisms.
• Celebrate diversity and complement the different learning styles and characteristics with appropriate activities.
• Incorporate different pathways to learning, integrate individual talents and challenge our children.
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Set up an ideal study space:
Have a designated area for your child to study as it brings an academic atmosphere into your home.
• Find a peaceful, quiet area either in a communal space or a more private room.
• Remove all distractions like phones and loud music, while keeping other digital devices for study purposes only.
• Play calm or classical music that will help concentration and not interfere with studying.
• Consider lighting and temperature that will enhance comfort and focus.
• Have all your supplies at hand and readily available as this will prevent unnecessary movement.
• Personalise the space to fit your needs and display motivating or informational posters on the surrounding walls.
• Be organised and clean up between activities and at the end of each day.
Master the basics skills:
Before venturing onto more complex concepts, it is very important that children master the required basic skills first.
• Simple mental maths that target single digit addition, subtraction, multiplication and division will help build the necessary foundation.
• Once mastered, older children can move onto double-digit mental maths exercises, formulas and theorems.
• For language skills concentrate on phonics and syllabication as this will help your child read more fluently and understand what they read.
• Reading aloud and to each other will help children enunciate, use a variety of tones and know when to pause.
• Exploring various character education traits will help children understand the importance of being honest, having integrity and using effective communication skills.
• Note-taking and study strategies and exploring mind maps will give children more control over their studies.
Develop good work ethic:
Instilling good work ethic is the most important indicator of career success and future excellence.
• Try to stick to your daily schedule as much as possible.
• Practise punctuality and cultivate the need for self-discipline, integrity and good values.
• Avoid distractions like social media and checking emails, instead reserve those for designated times and during breaks.
• Be task- and not time-oriented, while also managing your time wisely.
• Take responsibility for your words and actions as these can have reversible consequences.
• Be prepared to receive back from others and always spend time on self-reflection.
• Stay balanced by getting enough sleep, exercise, relaxation and following a good diet.
*Issued by Ponnie Moodley, director of Nkowa Education