17 Ways to Help Your Child Develop Better Study Skills

It is essential that you foster in your own home the principle that hard work is the key to school success. It is one of your most solemn responsibilities as a parent. As your child grows, let him know that studying is a top priority. 

There will be much enjoyment in learning, but at the same time there needs to be determined effort. And always praise the child’s effort. Make your child understand that studying must take precedence over practically everything else: watching tv, playing with video games, talking with friends, and playing sports. Cultivate such an ethos in your home by the ideals you express, the rules you set, the behavior you model, and the encouragement you give.

Consequently, the most critical task is to help your child learn how to study. It takes certain skills. Children aren’t born with them. They have to be developed, which means adults must take the time and responsibility to show youngsters the way. When youngsters routinely sit down the night before test, stare at the books, go to school the next day, and fail, often the problem is that no one has really taught them the art of studying well.

 Here are 17 ways to help your child develop better study skills:

1. Identify and designate a place for studying which is quiet and free from movement or other distractions (e.g. no tv, away from siblings, isolated from phone calls, etc.)

2. Choose a time which allows for maximum concentration (e.g. after an hour of play or relaxation, after dinner, etc.) This could be an individual preference.

3. Have your child study at the same identified time each day. In the event he does not have an assignment, the time can be used reading or reviewing.

4. It is vital that your child be required to follow a routine of studying and preparing for school each day.

5. Make sure your child is aware of those specified times when he can watch tv, play video games or visit with a friend, etc.

6. Work the first problem or problems with your child to make certain that he understands and follows the written directions accurately.

7. Make certain that the vocabulary used in delivering instructions, directions, lectures, etc., is appropriate for your child’s ability level.

8. Provide your child with a shorter task which does not require extended attention in order to be successful.   Gradually increase the length of the task as your child demonstrates success.

10. Provide time at the beginning of each activity/day for your child to organize his materials (e.g., before school, after school, end of the day, etc.).

11. Act as a model for being prepared for activities.

12. Give your child fewer concepts to learn at any one time, spending more time on each concept until your child can learn correctly.

13. Have your child highlight or underline key words, phrases, and sentences from reading assignments newspapers magazines etc.

14. Have your child review new concepts each day for a short period of time rather than two or three times per week for longer periods of time.

15. Require your child to use resources, including the library and the internet, to provide information to help him be successful when performing tasks.

16. Provide your child with opportunities for drill activities in the most interesting manner possible(e.g. working with a computer, using a calculator, playing educational games, watching a film, etc.)

17. Allow your child to use devices to help him successfully perform specific tasks (e.g. calculator, multiplication tables, dictionary, etc.)

Overall emphasize the importance of studying and the joy of learning so it becomes such a personal value for your children that it will remain with them their entire lives. 

What would you like to add to this list? Leave your comments below.