Improving Test-Taking Struggles
A challenge for many parents is wanting to help their kids succeed in school but not always knowing how best to do that. When they see a child struggle with homework, where do they start? A math and science tutor for many years and co-founder of the online tutoring service Virtual Nerd, Leo Shmuylovich says parents can do two critical things: observe, then assess what the problem is.
“Parents are in a unique position — they can sit down with their child, one-on-one, and devote extra time at home to understanding their child’s needs. Teachers in a busy classroom don’t always get that opportunity or it can take longer in school to identify the student’s need,” says Shmuylovich.
Shmuylovich offers these suggestions for parents to help overcome a child’s learning struggles.
Problem: Poor Review or Test-taking Skills
If your child is doing well on homework but does poorly on written exams, it could mean she has either poor review or test-taking skills.
Solution: Help your child develop the habit of setting aside time each day to review his work. Create a mock “high stakes” environment each day, during which the student has to solve problems without the help of a textbook or other reference tool. You can easily set this up and then gradually lead your student to do this on his own.
Problem: Misunderstanding a Current Concept
When your child misunderstands a current concept, it can be frustrating. This is the place where you may have the most difficulty helping your child, since the concept may be new to you too.
Solution: Try putting your child in the role of teacher and ask him to explain the concept to you, the “student.” If your child can explain the concept to you well enough, he should be able to handle the related work. You may also want to search online for videos that explain or demonstrate the concept. For example, Virtual Nerd offers several tutorials that explain and help reinforce math and science concepts.
Problem: Not Enough Practice
Some students don't have enough practice with either current or previous concepts, which becomes evident when they tell you they “can’t remember how to do it.”
Solution: It can be tough for you to write out new problems that practice a particular concept for your child. Instead Shmuylovich recommends that you seek out additional practice within the text or ask the teacher for specific worksheets or other practice. Sometimes it really is just a matter of repeated execution (the multiplication table comes to mind, but it's the same for A + B = C).
How do you help your children study without "doing it for them"?
Photo used with permission of Flickr Creative Commons.
