Category: Education

Good study habits start in early childhood. Children who learn to cut out distractions and focus their attention will develop a strong study “muscle” that serves them well in high school and college. As a parent, you can set your children up for success by catering to their physical needs and developing consistent routines.

Utilizing the best that online tutoring and Ed-Tech have to offer are important steps to ensuring your child has the tools they need to build good study habits throughout their entire educational journey.

Physical Needs for Study Habits

Young children don’t yet understand the connection between their physical well-being and their ability to learn and focus on mental tasks. As a parent, you can make it easier for young children to adopt healthy study habits by taking care of their physical needs.

Start by ensuring that your child gets enough sleep. Young children need 10-12 hours of sleep to develop properly and to ensure that they can focus on their studies. So, set a regular bedtime for your child and keep them on the same sleep schedule throughout the whole week.

Your child also needs to eat healthy foods and drink plenty of water throughout the day. Eating poorly can cause mental fatigue, and breakfasts or lunches high in carbs or sugar can cause afternoon slumps due to spikes in energy levels. Instead of sugary snacks and cereal, provide your child with a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, grains, and a variety of proteins.

Ensuring that you cater to your child’s physical needs alleviates many of the challenges associated with studying, and helps you create a consistent routine that they will stick to.

Creating a Routine

Children do best when they know what to expect, and a daily schedule that involves learning will strengthen their study habits.

A good study routine should be consistent. Choose a regular time of day to study with your child and always study in the same place. For example, if your child is at a kindergarten or Pre-K during the day, you should choose a study time in the late afternoon and settle down somewhere with plenty of space like a kitchen table.

You can figure out the best time to study based on your child’s mood and energy levels. If you notice that they’re tuckered out after kindergarten or Pre-K, give them some time to rest and take care of their physical needs by feeding them and giving them plenty of water. Don’t leave it too late, though, as kids may start to lose focus as the evening draws on.

Managing Study Stress

Studying can cause real stress in children. Some children find kindergarten and Pre-K extremely taxing and have a hard time keeping up with their peers in the classroom. If you notice that your child is extremely stressed due to schoolwork, it may be worth seeing a pediatrician who can help identify learning difficulties and suggest solutions.

You can also help manage study-related stress by creating a low-stakes environment and encouraging your child with positive feedback. This is particularly important if your child is a little behind other kids, as academic setbacks can cause stress levels to rise and make children seize up when studying.

Remember that not all learning has to occur at a desk. Sometimes exercise and activity can become a part of your child’s routine and help them develop good study habits. Consider taking the study session outside to illustrate ideas from geography classes and kinesiology. This will help build a positive association between studying and happiness and help relax children who are excessively stressed due to schoolwork.

Online Tutoring

As a parent, you are probably busy with your own work and outside responsibilities. This makes it difficult to preside over every study session your child has. Additionally, as your child grows older, you may not have answers to all the questions involved in their school work.

It’s perfectly acceptable to outsource your child’s study time and opt for online tutoring sessions. Online tutoring at home puts your child in touch with brilliant educators from all over the world and provides an innovative and interactive learning experience for children of all ages.

Online tutoring is a worthwhile supplement to your child’s study routine, but it isn’t without challenges. You’ll need to check in on children who are taking tutoring classes online to ensure that they aren’t surfing the web, and you must find a reputable, skilled tutor that you trust to deliver consistently high-quality study sessions for your child.

Conclusion

Many children do not learn good study habits until later in their school career. This makes it difficult to implement a productive study routine and can be detrimental to children’s academic careers. Instead, build good study habits in early childhood by providing a consistent daily routine of learning and homework. Instilling proper study techniques now will serve students well when the move up to secondary school.

You can make studying easier by feeding young children a healthy, balanced diet to promote well-being and focus. If you’re too busy to study with your child, take advantage of reputable online tutors who know how to deliver an interactive learning experience.

About the Author
Katie Brenneman is a passionate writer specializing in education, mental health, family lifestyle and online safety. When she isn’t writing, you can find her with her nose buried in a book or hiking with her dog, Charlie. You can follow her on Twitter.

Read how students with dyslexia have excellent memory skills and how parents can help them in other areas.

Writing is an artwork that craves creative minds and passion from the heart. Writing is also a key to improving communication and confidence levels at all stages. Perhaps that is why parents desire to make it a priority to help our children learn writing skills and ensure they gain the aptitude to shine like a pro.

Writing has so many valuable benefits throughout life. It’s a powerful tool of communication, as well as an empowering internal tool those those who use journalism to work out their thoughts. Of course, the educational benefits for excelling in school can’t be ignored, such as writing an essay.

According to research, most children are pretty bad at writing, while others are born with natural talent.  In either case, if you are anxious about your child’s growth in this area and want to help your children learn the art of writing, here are some tips to consider.

Top Tips To Improve Your Children’s Writing

It is a reality that today’s children have become sharp-minded and brilliant in our current fast-paced environment.  There are many things they can learn to do without your assistance. But this should never be taken for granted when it comes to boosting your children’s writing skills. There is too much at stake to ensure they have the academic skills to truly succeed.

Schedule a reading session

According to research, reading is the key to better communication, logical thinking, decision-making skills, socializing, and writing. When someone reads, their mind connects with an aura in their head, and they get open to the world of information. Not just this, reading can also entice one to get to know about different writing styles. So, try to schedule a reading session for your children so they can learn the world through manually written words. You can arrange a series of books according to their grade level. Also, ask them to read aloud to perceive the words better.

Help them explore new topics of their choice.

Yet another best tip to consider when planning to improve your child’s writing skills is to help them explore new topics. Many people become spoon feeders that revolve around a particular thing and cannot think or function out of the box. One reason can be their focus that is only putting a flash in one direction. You should note that it is human nature that when you give a daily dose of the same thing to your mind, your mind will make a habit of it, and you cannot think or perceive beyond that. So, ask or put effort into helping your children explore different topics to become versatile in writing.

Ask them to rewrite

Writing skills always start from rewriting. It is the process that refers to reading or understanding a topic or content and jotting it down in your words. For instance, you have read a topic on using anti plagiarism tools. After reading and understanding the whole thing, you have to sit back and pen those things in your words. You can do this by changing the structure and word usage by keeping the same meaning. You can ask children to do rewriting to improve their writing skills.

Talk about the ideas they have in their mind.

Yet another extraordinary thing to consider to boost your children’s writing skills is making a conversation about their ideas. After the reading session, you can take a session of this to discuss what they think about the topic, how they felt about the story or character while reading, and other related things. You can also ask them questions about all the productive and adorable things they might have stuck in their minds. In this way, you can make their minds open and sharp.

Make a strict rule for avoiding plagiarism.

Plagiarism is a thing that can ruin your children’ writing skills. If they develop a propensity to plagiarizing other work, they can never attain a good writing level. So, it would be good to make a strict rule for plagiarism occurrence. This is especially true when researching other writings for school or even when writing for fun.  Ask them to use a plagiarism checker free. Also, ensure them that you will use the plagiarism detector aid to keep a check on them, too.

Let them go for spell and grammar checks.

What’s more, slang when your children make grammar mistakes? Of course, they are already educated in their schools about this. But the completion of it while writing is not possible at the initial stages. To help your children avoid mistakes and boost their writing skills, ask them to use grammar checking tools and apps. You can ask them to drop their written text in the grammar checker and run it to pull out mistakes. Most of these grammar checking aids show the errors because you can replace them with suggestions. When your children do this, they can better learn what mistakes they make and how to avoid them.

End Words

As we try to give you a detailed guide on how you can help your children improve their writing, you should instill in them that writing is a basic thing they should learn.  It can be easy if they learn the art of writing and how to enjoy the process.

Making the decision about whether or not to send your child to college can be difficult. There are so many factors to consider! Another option that you may not have considered is a trade school. Trade schools can offer great education and career opportunities for your child.

For example, programs in Business Studies can provide practical skills and knowledge that are highly valued in the job market. It’s important to discuss the pros and cons of sending your child to a trade school or college. It will help you decide what is best for your family!

Consider The Cost Of College

There are many things to consider when making the decision about whether or not to send your child to college. The cost of college is one factor. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2017-2018 school year was $34,740 at private colleges, $24,930 at public colleges, and $14,210 for in-state students at public colleges. The cost of college has been rising steadily for years, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down. Trade schools can be a more affordable option for your child.

Assess What Finances They Need from You

One of your jobs is to figure out what they need from you for support and how you can provide it. If you kid is headed to college, one thing they are probably going to need from you is some financial support. This can be difficult for many parents to provide, even if they have been putting aside savings to help with the cost of college. One potential option is by taking out parent loans for college. This is a low-rate private loan that can take some of the burden of future student loan debt away from them.

Think About Your Child’s Interests And Goals

When making the decision about what academic program you want to enroll your child in, it is important to think about their own desires and goals. If your child is interested in a trade or has a specific career goal in mind, trade school may be the best option. Namely, trade schools don’t require a GED or diploma, and you will be able to attend programs that are focused on specific trades and careers. This can help your child get the education and training they need to succeed in their chosen field.

Weigh The Pros And Cons Of Each Option

There are pros and cons to both college and trade schools. It is important to think hard before making a final decision. Therefore, some of the pros of sending your child to college include the opportunity to explore different fields and interests, they will receive a well-rounded education and your child can meet new people. On the other hand, some of the cons of sending your child to college include whether or not you will need to go into debt as costs rise. Your child may not even know for sure what they want to study when they start college.

The Pros Of Trade School

Some of the pros of sending your child to trade school include the lower cost of tuition, programs that are focused on specific trades and careers, and shorter programs. Namely, this last factor can be a great benefit because your child will not spend as much time in school and can start their career sooner.

The Cons Of Trade School

Some of the cons of sending your child to trade school include the perception that trade school is not as good as college, or that it is only for students who are not academically inclined. Additionally, your child may not have the opportunity to explore different fields and career interests.

The decision about whether or not to send your child to college or trade school is a difficult one. There are many career paths and factors to consider! In this blog post, we have discussed the pros and cons of each option. Weigh all of the factors before making a decision that is best for your family.

Online classes have many advantages beyond just decreasing the impact school closures: they can be more engaging, provide more opportunities for personalized learning, and save on commuting time.  No wonder, then, that the future of online education remains positive—even as kids return to school.

While many teachers have embraced online learning, others have found the transition to be challenging. But with just a little bit of effort, you can make the switch successfully.

Here are five tips to help you boost your productivity and ensure the consistent growth of your students while learning online.

Set Out Your Plans Early

The first step to being productive as an online educator is simple: you need to set out your plans early. By outlining what you want to achieve in each class, you’ll have a better sense of what actions you must take and when you need to take them. This will help you stay on track while teaching and avoid getting sidetracked.

Don’t try to accomplish too much in a single class—you’ll only end up frustrated and overwhelmed. Instead, break down your goals into smaller, more manageable tasks that you can complete.

Get Organized

This won’t be news to older teachers, but it bears repeating. Most teachers are indeed quite organized, but even the most fastidious teachers can get overwhelmed once classes start piling up.

There are no hard rules when it comes to getting organized. We generally suggest just doing what works best for you and your students. Some ideas to consider:

• Creating a master list of all the topics you want to cover in your course
• Divvying up your master list into smaller units or modules
• Making a schedule for each unit, including deadlines for when each topic should be covered
• Assigning readings, videos, and other materials for each class session
• Filling out answer keys for faster grading

Preparing everything you need ahead of time means one less thing to worry about during class. It also gives you a sense of control and mastery over the material, which can boost your confidence in front of your students.

Split Your Tasks

Teachers are constantly pulled one way and then another. There are a million things that need to be done and not enough hours in the day to do them all. The key to productivity, especially online, is splitting your tasks up so that you can focus on one thing at a time.

You can break them down in any number of ways. Our two favorites:

• High- and low-involvement- Some teachers like to split their tasks between those that are high-involvement, such as lesson planning, and those that are low-involvement, like photocopying. This allows you to tackle the difficult work when you feel most energetic and save the simpler tasks for when you need a break.

• Urgent and not so urgent– Another way to split your tasks is by urgency. This can help you prioritize what needs to be done first and prevent you from getting bogged down in the less important work.

Whichever way you choose, the important thing is that you find a way to focus on one task at a time so that you can give it your full attention.

Harness Technology

To be as productive as possible, make sure you make the most of the technology tools available to you. Doing this not only makes your life easier, but it also makes your students’ learning experience better.

Again, feel free to go with whatever tools work best for you and your students, but here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Screen capture– Use this tool to take pictures of what’s on your screen. This is great for when you want to save a website, document, or image for later reference. You can also use it to show a student’s screen to the rest of the class.

• Smart class management system– These systems help you manage your classroom by keeping  track of assignments, grades, and student progress. They can also be used to create and deliver assignments, such as GitHub for Education.

• Assisting tools– There are many tools available that can help you with things like taking attendance, monitoring student activity, and providing feedback.

It’s unlikely that your students will need much help using these tools, but it’s always a good idea to go over them at the beginning of the semester just in case. By familiarizing yourself with the technology available to you and taking advantage of the features that can make your life easier, you can help ensure a productive and successful semester.

Take an Individual Approach

Many parents and students are concerned that, with remote learning fast becoming the norm, teachers won’t have enough time to give each student the individual attention they need to succeed. But there are always ways that teachers can continue to have individual two-way communication with their students, even when teaching online.

Checking in for some one-on-one time virtually is a great way to ensure that your students are keeping up with their work, and to answer any questions or quell any concerns they may have. You can also set up chat rooms for students to communicate with one another or to ask you questions outside of class time—particularly helpful for shy students.

Getting to know each one of your students helps you gain an understanding of their individual needs and helps you cater to them in the best way possible. If one student, for example, seems to be interested in coding, you can point them to one of the many kid-friendly coding web resources available online.

Boosting your productivity as a teacher helps you make the most of your time, which in turn allows you to give your students the attention they need to thrive. Following the tips we outlined above will help you create a productive routine that works for you and your students.

Why Productivity Matters Beyond Efficiency 

Companies like Adobe have taken a dive into teacher efficiency and has uncovered a startling truth about saving money while saving the world.  Teachers and the school system could be greatly reducing costs with the adoption of eco-friendly practices, such as digital documents.

Here are a few stats to consider:

• The American US Education system uses 41.6 billion sheets of paper each year— equivalent to 4.16 million trees’ worth of paper every year— and spends $2.1 billion a year in printing paper alone.

• With digital documents, the average K-12 school can save $120,000 a year— an average savings of $13.50 per piece of paper replaced.

• For every 1,000 students that go paperless, a school saves 533 pounds of wood, 84 pounds of waste, and 1287 pounds of carbon dioxide.

So, here’s to better productivty for your classroom and school while shaping the minds of tomorrow to be the best they can be.