When the school day is over, most good parents will do their best to help their children successfully complete homework assignments. This doesn’t mean your children won’t occasionally struggle to get it done, however. Keep these six tips in mind when your child is having a hard time completing school work at home, especially if they’re looking forward to enrolling at St Margaret’s Berwick Grammar School.

Remain Calm

Description: frustrated student

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Because children are going to get frustrated from time to time with school work, it’s important to remain calm when they do. Feeding into their frustration and anger with your own only makes matters worse. Even trying to have a rational conversation to sort out what’s wrong can be next to impossible. Instead, let your child know that you understand her frustration and that you’re there to support her through difficult times.

Take a Break

Sometimes, the best action to take is no action at all. If your child has been working on a problem for an extended period of time without success, let him or her take a short break (five to 10 minutes) to blow off steam or do something unrelated to school work. When they comes back to the problem, they’ll feel refreshed and ready to tackle it once more.

Help Your Child Get Organized

Even if your child isn’t organized by nature, there are steps you can take to reduce the frustration that often results from being disorganized. For example, a clean backpack and organized notebook makes it easy for your child to quickly find the information and supplies they need to get homework done. Developing organizational skills early will help your child succeed in school, and they’re something that will last a lifetime.

Communicate with Your Child’s Teacher

Contact your child’s teacher as soon as problems begin to arise and communicate regularly over the course of the school year. The teacher will know how your child is performing in school and has access to information and resources that can help you at home. As a result they may recommend professional virtual tutoring, especially for challenging subjects like math. Tutors can offer a variety of ways to help students of all ages with math. However, it all begins by opening a dialogue with the educators who work with your kid every day.

Don’t Do Your Children’s Work for Them

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Image via Flickr by Jose Kevo

While it’s important to support your children, don’t get into the habit of doing their work for them. When you do, your child’s teacher won’t know what he does and doesn’t understand. It also hurts your child in the long run, because they simply won’t get the help they need. Instead, sit with your children while they complete their assignments so that you can answer questions when they arise and provide encouragement when they get frustrated.

Have Your Child Tested if Problems Persist

If your child continues to have problems despite receiving help from a number of sources, it may be time to consider getting her tested. There is a battery of specialized tests that can help determine if your child has a learning disability.  Once the problem is identified, steps can be taken to provide a learning environment that supports your child and ensures her success.

School work is never going to be free of conflict. It makes sense, therefore, to have some effective strategies on hand the next time your children throw their pencils across the room and drop their heads in frustration.

Guest Contributor Amanda Brown is a freelance writer whom enjoys playing and coaching volleyball. She loves her friends and family including her dog, Charlie; as well as traveling all around the world.