5 Mid-Year Tips for School Success
With the school year halfway complete, your child may be starting to coast. They might have started the school year off on a strong note, only to slowly lose focus, motivation, and organization. Help your child have a GREAT second half of the school year with the ideas detailed below.
Organizational System
Some students start off the school year with well-organized notebooks, folders, and binders. They set up systems and begin the year on a high note. Yet as the year progresses, many students use these systems less and less. Oftentimes their piles of papers begin to rise, their backpacks turn into a mess, and they consistently lose or forget materials. Mid-way through the school year can serve as a great time to sit down with your child and re-evaluate their organizational systems. Have them show you the strategies they are currently using (or not using) and take a look at their backpacks, notebooks, and folders. If their organization is lacking, help them revamp or create new systems. For instance, you might try this two-tier organizational system: tier 1 is a notebook or set of folders that contain only what they absolutely need to carry with them to and from school on a regular basis. One day per week should be designated as “clean out day”, where your child cleans out any papers or materials they no longer need to carry with them and files them into an accordion file (tier 2). This accordion file should contain three section per class: homework, notes, and tests/quizzes. Your child should file away lose papers into the appropriate section of this accordion file, which they keep at home. For older students, you can help them organize their computer files by creating digital files for each subject and sub-files within each subject for homework, study guides, projects, and so on.
You can also help your child create a color-coded system for their materials by designating one color per class. For example, math may be blue, science may be green, English may be purple - and all folders and notebooks should be utilized in the appropriate color for that class.
Set up a Work Space
You might find mid-way through the school year that your child moves around to a new space every day when they work on their homework. Encourage them to select one spot for competing their school work. This might be a desk in their room or even a table in a common space, like a kitchen or dining room. Make sure this space is fully stocked with all of the materials they may need for completing their work, including pens, pencils, paper, highlighters, and so on, and consistently fill the supplies as they run low. If your child works in a common area, you may want to help them create a portable supplies bucket filled with all the supplies they may need for completing their work that they carry with them to and from their room before and after they do their homework.
Pick a Study Time
Similar to having a consistent space for doing school work, your child should also select a consistent study time. Some students work best right after school, while others need a small break for a snack or physical activity. Discuss with your child which time works best for them and encourage them to work on their homework at that same time every day. There may be some days when your child has a sports game or other activity after school and the time needs to be modified - that’s completely fine! If that’s the case, sit with them before the school week begins and come up with a study plan for the upcoming week.
Reflect With Your Child
Mid-way through the school year is a great time to reflect with your child on their school performance. Are there areas in school where they are doing well? Areas that are more challenging? If your child indicates that some subjects are more difficult, try to did a little deeper. What is it about those subjects that makes them more challenging? If English class is a struggle, is it the writing? Reading assignments? Try to gather as much information as possible from your child - then reach out to their teacher if necessary to gain more information so you can help them accordingly.
Address Areas of Struggle
If your child is struggling with a skill or set of skills, take action! Reach out to their teacher to discuss these areas of struggle and see what kind of support the school can offer. If the struggle becomes even greater, you may want to consider having your child evaluated for a learning or attentional challenge. You may want to also consider outside academic tutoring to help build their skills in reading, writing, math, executive functioning, or content-area skills. Try to be as proactive as you can in seeking this support to prevent future challenges your child may have.
Mid-way through the school year is a great time to reflect and take action. Try these strategies at home to help your child excel through the rest of this school year.
Learn more about EBL Coaching’s one-on-one in-person and virtual tutoring programs at www.eblcoaching.com.
