Rules for Teaching the ABC’s of Social Skills

My Playmate

Although you have a role to play in teaching social skills to your children, it is often best that you play it unobtrusively. 

In particular, you must guard against embarrassing your children by correcting them too publicly and against labeling them as shy  in ways that may lead them to see themselves in just that way. 

Children, then, acquire social skills not so much from adults than from their interaction with one another. They are likely to discover through trial and error which strategies work and which do not, and later to reflect consciously on what they have learned.                       

Children are much more comfortable when they know the guide rules for handling the social amenities. It’s no more fun for the child to be introduced to a strange adult and have no idea what to say or do than it is for a grown up to go to a formal dinner and have no idea what knife or fork to use.

How do you teach social skills to you children? Leave your thoughts below.

14 No Nonsense Ways to Help Your Child Read Better

As the former Secretary of Education William Bennett, once wrote, children learn to read by reading. Many American schoolchildren, however, read ten or fewer pages a day for school  and homework combined.

Your child will not become a really strong reader with such a limited amount of experience. He needs to be reading at home everyday. Especially if his homework is light, non-existent, or it's summer time, he needs to spend some additional time with books.

Here are the 14 No Nonsense Ways to Help Your Child Read Better:

1. Make certain your child’s reading material is appropriate for his or her level. If not, modify or adjust reading material to your child’s ability level

2. Have your child verbally paraphrase material just read in order to enhance his or her comprehension.

3. Teach your child to identify the main point in the material in order to enhance his or her comprehension.

4. Have your child outline, underline,or highlight important points in the reading material

5. Have your child read progressively longer segments of reading material in order to build comprehension skills (e.g.begin with a single paragraph and progress to several paragraphs, short stores, etc.)

6. Have your child list new or difficult words in categories such as people, food, animals, things that are hot etc.

7. When your child encounters  a new word or one whose meaning is not understood, have your child practice making up sentences in which the words can be used in the correct context.

8. Have your child identify one word each day that is not understood and require him or her to use that word throughout the day in various situations.

9. Make certain your child learns the meaning of all commonly used prefixes and suffixes.

10. Give your child time to read a selection more than once, emphasizing accuracy not speed.

11. Reduce the amount of material your child reads at one time (e.g., reduce reading materials to single sentences on a page, a single paragraph, etc.). Gradually increase the amount of material as your child experiences success.

12. Highlight or underline important information your child should pay close attention to when reading.

13. Make certain that your child learn dictionary skills in order to find the meanings of words independently.

14. Stop your child at various points throughout a reading selection to check for comprehension.



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

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.