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Working together as a team to help your child succeed.

Rather than parents and tutors feeling that they are helpless and unable to do anything to get their children to do their schoolwork they should consider that they are part of a tutoring team.  If the Parents, Tutor and Student can work together this will help your child succeed.

1. Communication is the key to making the Tutoring Team work:

The first thing a team does is they get to know one another.  Spend some quality time with your child. Talk about things that they enjoy. Encourage your child’s Tutor to also spend the time to get to know your child.

Your child may not understand why they even need to be doing their homework in the first place.  Consider having a talk with your child and your child’s tutor to discuss why they need to do homework and how it will help them for the rest of their lives. Much of what we learn comes from repeated practice over time. This will help your child understand why doing homework is important.

2. Establish each member’s role in the Tutoring Team:

Each member of a team plays an important role. A Tutoring Team is no different. There is the need for supportive parents, who care about their child’s success. The student should try their best to work hard and to work with their parents and their tutor. Tutors also play a supporting role to help establish lesson plans that can be adapted to the individual student’s learning styles.

3.  Setting Team goals to work toward during Tutoring Sessions:

The next thing a team does is to establish a goal. What are you trying to accomplish as a team? You all are working together so that the student can master the specific skills that they need to learn and be able to advance to the next level. Establish specific goals with specific rewards.  Involving your child in this process will help them to take ownership of their schoolwork.

4. Consistency and Keeping up the Moral of the Team: Don’t set your child up to fail

It is important to find ways to help your child succeed at doing schoolwork. Try to set tutoring sessions during a time when your child is the most productive – this could be different for each child. Some children are able to do their homework as soon as they come home from school  while others may need some down time to play and release some energy. Others may work better after dinner. As long as you and your tutor are consistent and help your child stick to their scheduled homework and tutoring time- you will see your child is more likely to succeed.

5. Having the Proper Practice (Tutoring) Space and Equipment:

All teams need a place to practice and the proper equipment in order to improve their skills. Make sure that your child and tutor have the space and materials they need for their tutoring sessions. Your child’s Math Tutor may need to use a whiteboard or have access to a CD player or computer. Having the Space and materials can make all the difference!

If you view yourself as part of a Tutoring Team you will be more committed  and active  in your child’s learning process. When the Team wins a game or when your child starts to improve at school you will feel even more proud because of the part you played to help your child accomplish their goals.

If your child has a hard time doing their homework and you feel like you are constantly fighting with them to get them to sit still and concentrate, then here are some useful homework tactics for parents and tutors that will make your child’s homework time more pleasant and productive.

1. Schedule Homework Time and Tutoring Sessions

Your child might put up a fight any time you ask them to do their homework, but in most cases children actually do want and need some structure and guidelines for their schedule in order to be productive. Just like adults need to keep a schedule in order to be productive, children benefit from knowing exactly what needs to get done and when it needs to be completed.  Enforcing a scheduled homework time for your child might seem harsh, but it will actually show your child that you care about them and they will appreciate that, even if they don’t show it.

2. Positive Reinforcement and Rewards

All children need some motivation. You and your child may decide that if they complete their homework for five days in a row they will receive a reward, like their favorite dinner or dessert.  Sticker charts are an excellent way to keep a record of your child’s progress. Make the chart visible so that your child can be reminded of what is required of them and how they are doing in terms of completing their goal.  During tutoring sessions this same method can be used by your tutor so you are all working toward the same goal.

3. Parents and Tutors Setting a Good Example of Learning

You can be a positive example to your child by learning new things yourself. The best way human beings learn is by observing and mimicking behaviors.  If your child sees that you are learning new things (such as reading educational books or learning a new language), they will realize you are not forcing them to do something you are not willing to do yourself.  Talk to your child about something that you learned that day and ask your tutor to spend time during tutoring sessions to talk with your child about things that they are learning and what helped them in the learning process.

4. Homework is for Students NOT Parents or Tutors!

Don’t do your child’s work for them and don’t let your child’s tutor do it for them either. When it comes time to doing homework, parents need to realize that helping too much and doing your child’s homework for them really isn’t helping them learn the subject matter. The teacher sends work home with the students so that they can find out how the students are doing, how much they have already learned, and what they need more help with.  What you can do is to help your child focus, sit with them and explain the assignment to them, but don’t do the work for them.

5. Proper Learning Environment for Homework Time and Tutoring Sessions

This last tactic is so basic that it may be overlooked by most parents.  All children need to have a proper workspace to do their homework.  This space will differ based on the child, but could be at their personal desk in their bedroom, at the kitchen table, or a table in a quiet room free from distractions.  This same principle can be applied to a space for tutoring sessions by making sure the tutoring session occurs in an environment that is conducive to your child’s learning.

All of these tips can be geared toward your individual child.  If you have more than one child- you may need to adapt these tactics in ways to meet each of your child’s different needs.  Ultimately, regardless of your child’s style of learning, personality, and interests your role as parents is to support them to be independent learners.

Learning a language can be difficult for a child if they are only studying it a few hours a week.  The best way to learn a language is to be fully immersed in it. If you moved to a French speaking country, your child would pick up the language in no time. However, there are ways to facilitate your child’s learning and help your French tutor in Vancouver Island, B.C. by encouraging French learning at home and in your daily activities.

1. Your French tutor may be teaching your child French songs. Try to learn these with your child so that they can practice the language at home. Singing is one of the best and most ancient ways of memorization. You can even ask your French Tutor to sing more songs to your child so they can grasp the subject easier.

2. If your child is learning about French culture, consider cooking French food with them. Ask your French tutor to spend some time introducing French foods and recipes during the tutoring session. You can also help your child use their French by using the French names for foods you eat regularly like fruits, vegetables, bread, milk, etc.

3. Do role playing activities together.  After making a French meal, set up the dining room like a French restaurant.  They can write a script with their French tutor. First they can practice being the server, explaining what the food is and how to take the orders.  Then they can also practice being the guest and learn the proper way to order their food just as if they were in a restaurant in France.  Take this a step further by taking your child to a local French restaurant in Vancouver Island and let them order their meal in French.

4. Play familiar card or number games (using French). Any opportunity to count in French will ingrain the French numbers into your child’s memory. Play games that require counting such as dice or card games. Cribbage is a game that uses counting as well as addition, so they can practice French and Math at the same time.

5. Find children’s books written in French that your child can read with you and with the French Tutor. Try to find a book that your child is already familiar with and that they enjoy reading.  Encourage them to read aloud so they can practice their pronunciation.

6. Turn your house into an interactive flash card. Ask your French Tutor to make labels for things around the house such as the window, table, refrigerator, closet, light, etc. and post them around the house so that your child gets used to seeing the French word when they look at the objects.

7. Let your French Tutor know about the subjects that interest your child, so they can use them as conversation ideas during their tutoring sessions.

These are just a few ways you can increase your child’s interest and practice of the French language.  You will see improvement in their skills and at the same time they will be enjoying the learning process with you and with your French tutor.