Teaching Study Skills
Guidelines for Teaching Study Skills
Teaching study skills can help young and adult students alike in improving their grades. Many students have the intelligence to do well in school, but they don't. Why? Because they don't have adequate study habits. Good study skills won't change a “D” student into an “A” student necessarily, but they will help each student perform to the best of his ability.
If you teach your children the correct way to study, it will help them develop a positive attitude about their work, and a sense of competence about how they can excel in their classes. If you are serious about teaching study skills to your young students, they can carry over into their adult life as good work habits.
You must work together with your children in order for them to pick up the study skills that they need. They have to want to succeed in school and be able to develop a positive attitude about their experiences. Moreover, they need to figure out the techniques that work best for them, and then apply them to all their studies.
There are several ways you can help your student to enhance their study skills. One is making homework less of a chore and more of a positive thing. Work with your child or to help make homework a priority in their lives. Provide support for your child as he works to complete his assignments, and praise him when the work is done in a timely and accurate manner. Be helpful if your child needs it, and maintain a positive attitude in assisting your child.
You can also use your child's homework assignments to help teach them to organize and prioritize. Homework is most important as a way to improve your child's ability to learn, and to help build a good work ethic. Teaching study skills sometimes means backing up good habits that your child is working toward.
Set up reasonable expectations as to when and how your child's homework should be done, and make sure he knows that there will be logical consequences if the goal is not met. Help your child to set up a study routine and then help him stick to that routine. Set up a place to study, so that your child won't be distracted by the TV or other conversations.
Your child may also benefit from study groups, where they can all learn together in an informal situation. Always be ready to help your child, possibly by asking suggested test questions on the drive to school, or the drive home. Make time to help your child during your evenings at home, if you work the same schedule as your child attends school.
With your help in teaching study skills, your child can excel in his classes, while building a steady work ethic for his future.