Investing in your child's education doesn't always mean starting a college fund or opening a CD in your 10-year-old's name in hopes that it will multiply before he gets the letter. college acceptance.
There are other ways besides financial aid that can be more beneficial for your child's education and that won't break your bank account.
The following five suggestions may well provide a greater return on your child's educational investment. Especially if they are established early in your educational career:
First – Homework and education
There are varying opinions among teachers about how much and what type of homework to provide. However, most teachers agree that when a parent is involved in some way in completing a student's homework, that student has a greater chance of success.
Whether or not a child has someone to help with homework every night is a great indication that they will understand the material. The fact is simple: even the best teachers must teach an entire group of students at a time, while parents can work individually with the child.
This is a very important factor. Teachers will jump through hoops just to arrange a few minutes a day to teach a smaller group of students.
Student learning increases dramatically when teachers have fewer students, so the more time you have with your child at home, the more they will learn. Every minute you can dedicate to reading, practicing, or reviewing with them individually will do wonders for their education.
Second – Respecting and supporting your child's teacher
When I was growing up, parents and teachers were on the same page. Somehow this has changed where the student and parents often oppose the teacher. This has horrible repercussions for a child's ability to learn.
Working together always works better than working individually. If a parent utters a disrespectful or disapproving word at the dinner table the night before. It is very likely that a student will disbelieve much of what the teacher says the next day.
By openly showing that you don't support the teacher's decisions, you are teaching your child that it's okay to do the same in the classroom. If a student does not respect their teacher, learning becomes much more difficult.
Third – Use technology wisely in education
Technology plays an increasingly important role in education today. However, it can also be a huge distraction. Set priorities and rules for technology in your home.
This may seem like common sense, but common sense is not always so commonly realized, and technology is having a negative effect on the education of many students. For example, spending hours and hours on a gaming system before starting homework late at night makes homework much less effective.
Children are less engaged in homework and completing homework becomes a battle with parents as opposed to an established early evening learning routine. On the positive side, teach your child to use technology to enrich and improve their learning using online resources and materials.
Fourth: Get involved in the classroom
This tip is primarily aimed at parents of elementary-age children. Many teachers appreciate parent volunteers. Time spent in your child's classroom is invaluable! This will help you better understand the events and situations that occur in the classroom and in your child's life.
It will help you understand different procedures and systems in the environment in which they spend most of their day so that you can better help them with any problems that arise socially or academically.
This also helps show your child that you value their learning and take the time you can to support them and their teacher.
Fifth: Communicate with the teacher
This is a tool little used in education. Parents and teachers are working toward the same goal of helping the same child learn. Communication is essential! Teachers can use your advice on how to help your child when they are struggling with something that is going on at home.
Similarly, parents can use teachers' help when students are struggling academically. When parents and teachers work as a team, the child can feel the support network around them and the workloads of both adults are lightened.
When you communicate, a teacher knows you are involved and appreciates and respects the work they do for your child. They will include you in more information when they know you are interested. Communication is essential for parents and teachers to work as a team to help a child succeed.
Final Considerations About Your Child’s Education
If you can establish these five basic principles in your child's experience from an early age, their chances of a superior education will increase significantly before even if they start thinking about college.
No matter how large a child's college fund is, if they don't have a foundation of respect and value for education, it will be much more difficult for them to succeed.
