A Mind ‘Set’ for Study
When it comes to studying, your child needs to have their mind ‘set’ in the right direction. Dually to this, having a ‘good mind-set’ is imperative to your child’s wellbeing and success.
When it comes to doing well, we might preach self-discipline, determination, will power and hard work. However, keeping a sense of balance is ultimately going to lead to the best results for your child.
Strategic Self-Discipline
Self-discipline is really hard for us as adults, let alone for teenagers. During your teenager’s exam years, clear structure will be your teenager’s ‘carpet for walking on!’
It is structure and routine that is likely to help them stay in control and on track when it comes to their studies. A student who is used to coming home and completing homework for an hour before tea, for example, is a student who won’t find it shocking to do the same before exams.
Setting out time for studying, and time for leisure and rest, needn’t be a challenge. At home, you can slowly introduce some study time into each day- or every few days.
It’s also great to sign your child up for revision classes. As an external revision provider, we can offer your child an excellent environment in which to revise, guided by our subject specialists.
Determination
Whilst some children are naturally going to be more ‘determined’ than others, this doesn’t mean to say there aren’t strategies that will help your teen to flourish at ‘moving forward!’
Rewards will never tire. Even as adults, we enjoy praise for things we have done well; we love a treat or an incentive within reaching distance. Offering treats and rewards doesn’t have to feel like ‘bribery.’ Instead, it’s about recognising success and laying down goals for your teenager to spur on their determination to study well.
One simple way to address tricky topics at home might be to talk them through with your teen. Sometimes, things can become clearer if students are given the chance to talk about an idea or concept, and sound out their thoughts with another person listening in. Even if you, yourself, are unsure of the content, it can be helpful just to allow your child the space to try and explain something in a way which might provide more clarity for themselves by speaking it out loud. This is a strategy we also adopt, where appropriate, on our revision courses: we provide opportunities for students through their thinking- and bounce ideas off of one another in a friendly, yet focused, environment.
Hard Work
Putting in hard work can seem like a real slog. Particularly for students who have sat exams in years previous, studying again for another set of exams can be tiring. However, in the scheme of things, academic years are short! The time from September to summer soon flies by- and there really isn’t much time to waste!
Making the most of every moment in the classroom, on our revision courses, or studying at home becomes ‘the food’ to your child’s success. Working hard opens many doors, and a hard worker is something that employers will seek in your child’s later life! Therefore, encouraging your child that ‘hard work’ is both vital and important for life- amongst time to rest and recuperate- may help them to see that they are paving a wise ‘mindset’ for the rest of their lives!