Develop a specific plan for every upcoming test and exam

Now that the Assessment Calendar has been released [Refer to last week’s bulletin and attached in this edition again, for your convenience], challenge your child when they tell you that they’ll just study hard for the test or exam.

That’s too vague, and they may not even know what that looks like yet and they may feel as if they’ve never prepared enough.

Instead, develop a plan. Write down what resources your child is going to use, how many practice questions they intend to do, how many times they plan to read the notes, what study tips they can put into practice, etc.

Write all the steps down on a sheet of paper and create a rough timeline as well.

When your child has completed everything on their plan, they’ll feel accomplished and know that they’re well prepared.

By always having a plan, children learn faster and will be more efficient in using their time..

Create a conducive environment at home for studying

If you haven’t done so already,and if you want your child to be an effective student, they will need to have the right environment to work in. Children need all the necessary materials, their iPad, stationery, paper and study tools. They will also need a suitable table and lighting. Select a place for your child to work that is quiet but still a place where you can monitor and support their progress.

If children want to be productive, and develop sustainable habits, they definitely shouldn’t study on their bed or in their room with the door shut!

Before your child starts work, eliminate all distractions

Take a moment and think about the distractions your child typically faces when they’re trying to study. Common ones include messages, notifications on their phone, social media, YouTube, books, and magazines.

Remove these distractions before children commence work. Put their phone in another room, and turn it to silent. Switch off all notifications on their iPad.

Consider what the impact is for your child of listening to music as they work and respond accordingly. For some children this increases focus whilst for others it poses a distraction.

Use a stopwatch or timer

When children want to be productive, use a timer to help them focus. Using a timer adds a sense of urgency and they can see an end in sight when they are feeling challenged. A timer helps develop stamina and encourages persistence.

Try setting your child up to work in blocks of 30 to 40 minutes, followed by a short break. It's also useful to set the timer for their breaks too, so that they don’t take a 45-minute break when you only intended for them to take a 10- minute break.

Double-check that children have completed all the homework that’s due the next day

Set a recurring reminder on their iPad so that they’ll do this every school day in the mid-afternoon.

This will prevent them from scrambling at the last minute or pulling an all-nighter just to get the tasks done.

Every day, review all the new information your child learned in school earlier that day

If children do not have explicit homework set by teachers, it does not mean that they have no homework!

A quick review of the day’s key concepts/skills should only take a child about 20 minutes. Doing this helps to ensure understanding, so children stay on top of the new material. It also aides in committing information to long term memory.

If children really can’t do this review on the same day, ensure they do it the following day while the information is still fresh in their mind.

Keep an ongoing list of the questions your child has about the class material

As children read over their notes or complete homework tasks encourage them to keep a list of the things they don’t understand and the questions they have. As soon as your child is able to, they should ask their teachers about the items on the list.

It would be a good routine to develop, for children to attend WIN time the following monring to seek answers to their questions before the school day even commences. Remember WIN time occurs in the Learning Hb from 8.00-8.35am each morning and again in the afternoon from 3.00-4.00pm.

If children do consistently seek support when they do not understand, they won’t need to spend so much time studying for tests and exams, because they will already understand the information.

Every school night, remind your child to pack their schoolbag for the following day

This way, children won’t have to scramble in the morning to pack.

Set a reminder on their phone/iPad or put a Post-It note on their desk to ensure that they do this every school night.

Create a checklist for the things your child needs to remember to bring to school, and put the checklist somewhere accessible.

Ensure your child is awake a little bit earlier each morning so they don’t have to rush

For most children, waking up 5 to 10 minutes earlier is enough to avoid the unnecessary stress of rushing in the morning.

When children rush, they often forget things – which means that their day doesn’t start well. So the aim is to have children go to bed early, get at least eight hours of sleep every night, and set an alarm so they wake up a bit earlier.

It is recommended that the alarm clock is put at the other end of the room, rather than on a bedside table so your child won’t be tempted to hit ‘snooze’, or switch it off and go back to sleep.

Every school night, children should select all the correct uniform items for the following dayand lay them out ready to go

Encourage your child to take their school uniform for the following day, and hang it somewhere easily accessible, like on the door knob of their room door.

Ensure that they have selected the correct uniform and that all items are either formal or sports. Mixing and matching sports uniform items with formal uniform items is not permitted.

Ensure the correct shoes and socks are set out – this seems to be the biggest stressor/excuse students use for being late to school, 'I couldnt find my...'

Don’t forget to ensure your child, has their school hat, sitting there ready to go also.

This only takes a few minutes in the evening, but makes the morning that much less stressful.

Conclusion

Encourage your child to take one step at a time in developing their organisational skills and study routines. Start by identifying with them which areas they need to work on, and then prioritise them.

Encourage your child to adopt one new habit in the coming week. Once they’re comfortable with that habit, adopt one more.

Remember that no one is perfect. Your child’s journey as a student – and in life, too – is always about progress, not perfection!

Help your child to start making progress toward becoming a better organised and more focused student today!