Now that we are in early November, school has been in session for about a quarter of the year. The newness has worn off and kids are hopefully well into routines by now. At this point into the year, it can be helpful to take a step back and evaluate what is working and what is not for your child or teen.
You can certainly think about this yourself, but including your child or teen in the conversation helps them have more ownership in this process and you can work collaboratively to help make any adjustments as needed.
Common Things to Look at:
- Does my child have a good method for keeping track of assignments independently from relying on reminders from me?
- Is my child writing down assignments in some way or planning out completing them beyond looking at assignments in a school portal?
- Is my child frequently forgetting to do homework?
- Is my child often not getting assignments turned in on time?
- Is my child missing a lot of assignments in general?
- How is my child typically doing on quizzes and exams in each course?
- Is my child often forgetting a lunchbox or water bottle at home or school (if applicable)?
Based on these questions, you can work with your child or teen to identify tools or interventions to address any concerns that arise.
A couple of possible strategies to consider:
Tracking/planning out assignments:
- Paper planner
- Google Tasks
- Other electronic task list
- Table in a Google Doc
Completing homework:
- Set homework block each day on a calendar.
- Double checking together each night that all assignments are completed.
Remembering lunch/water bottle:
- Morning checklist
- Reminder from Amazon Echo
- Sticky note by front door.
Each child and teen’s needs may be somewhat different, so you need to work with them to identify what specific strategies might be best for them. Finally, if you feel that your child or teen is struggling beyond what makes sense to address yourself, a few common interventions include:
- Working with a subject tutor on course material
- Working with an executive function coach/tutor, therapist, or other professional on tracking assignments, planning, organizing, etc.
- Formal testing to diagnose ADHD, learning disabilities, and other items.
