For many parents, when it comes to helping children with homework, it’s easy to lose patience. With kids losing concentration easily, having trouble sitting still or unable to grasp new topics, it can certainly be a frustrating task. However, if you dread the homework process, we guarantee your kids will too. In fact, kids are much more likely to be successful in school when their parents take an active interest in their studies at home. Here’s 3 ways to improve your patience when helping your child with homework.
1. Identify Triggers and Find Solutions
To try and become more patient, it’s important for you to understand and identify when you are most likely to lose your patience. For some parents, it might be tricky to be calm early in the morning, whereas for others it may be because the study space or homework schedule is unorganised. Once you have identified your triggers, you can spend time coming up with some solutions. For example, if there’s a time constraint which makes you feel rushed and like you can’t give your child the attention they need, make sure you plan out homework sessions at a different time of day. Alternatively, if your kids are losing concentration easily, try to figure out what’s distracting them – is it the space they’re working in or have they been focusing on the same subject for too long? Adjust your homework set-up and see what works best. For other ways to make homework easier for your kids, read this helpful blog post.
2. Have a Homework Plan
Setting up and maintaining a homework routine is one of the best ways to avoid frustration for parents and unmotivated kids.. Start by figuring out when you and your child are going to be able to concentrate the best – this may be straight after school or perhaps after an hour of downtime at home. Once you have found the most effective time of day, schedule in homework sessions, making sure you allow for a break halfway through. Add these into the family calendar, this way you know to plan out your time around it and everyone in your household will know when you’re both busy. It’s also important to choose a location in your home where everyone can work with minimal distractions. Some kids thrive at a desk in their bedroom; others work happily at the dining room table – just make sure there are no TVs on or phones nearby! We guarantee having this plan will help you have much more patience when helping your kids.
3. Change Your Mindset
If you find you’re getting frustrated with your kids during homework sessions, there’s never been a better time to adjust your mindset. Instead of letting your patience wear thin and noticing all the things your child is doing wrong, try and find the positives. Giving your kids frequent encouragement and making notes of all of their improvements, rather than their mistakes will be sure to help you have more patience. It’s also important to be generous with your praise and make sure you recognise their effort. In fact, positive reinforcement will also reflect in the quality of their homework and will make your child realise that no matter how hard the task is, they can do it. Changing the way you approach these homework sessions is one of the easiest ways to truly appreciate your child’s hard work and offer beneficial study help rather than just getting frustrated.
If you think your child may need some extra support then don’t rule out getting a private tutor. Even if it’s once a week, it can make all the difference and really get their homework skills up to speed. Find out more about our programmes here.
