Author: Dr. Jared Spencer

With the new school year underway and many schools operating remotely, students are being asked to do more work at home than ever before. For students, remaining focused and motivated to complete assignments at home can be a challenge. The home environment is full of distractions that are not present within the school building, and the lack of in-person social interaction for students working remotely likely impacts their overall motivation to engage in school work. During these unprecedented times, it can feel especially daunting for parents to find ways to help their children manage, organize, and stay motivated to complete assignments at home.

Being able to effectively organize, manage, and complete homework depends greatly on a collection of different abilities referred to as executive functions. In addition to organizational skills, executive functioning refers to one’s ability to pay attention, solve problems, plan ahead, inhibit impulsive behaviors, hold information in mind (working memory), and show mental flexibility. While many of these skills begin to develop early on in child development, they continue to develop throughout adolescence and are generally not finished developing until early adulthood. As a result, many children and adolescents have difficulty with some aspects of executive functioning.

Parents should be mindful of how vital these executive functions are in managing and completing schoolwork. Since these neural pathways in children and teens are still developing, they may need support in honing these skills. During remote learning, along with navigating the practical elements of completing schoolwork at home, there are social-emotional factors that make it difficult for children to stay motivated. This does not mean to do their work for them. The goal here is to support your child’s developing executive functioning skills, and at times, model how some of those skills can be implemented. Here are 5 tips for parents who are wondering how best to support their child or teen’s academics:

1) Make Time for Planning and Organizing

For many kids, planning and organizing is a big hurdle to effectively completing assignments. In some cases, incomplete work can be attributed to difficulties with organization, and not necessarily the content of the work itself. For daily assignments, helping your child create to-do lists can help them have a better understanding of what work needs to be completed. Additionally, putting that list in a visible place can act as a reminder, reducing the need for you to constantly jog their memory. For long term projects, you can help your child break down the assignment into smaller parts. Children may feel overwhelmed and unsure of where to start, and they will benefit from having a clearer sense of the necessary components they need to eventually complete.

2) Minimize Distractions in Their Working Environment

The home environment is full of distractions that make learning and completing work a challenge for some kids. Combined with the fact that attentional control is still developing, kids may have a hard time managing some of these distractions on their own. Helping to create a distraction-minimal environment can help address some of these concerns. This can include designating a quiet place for school work that only contains the necessary technology and materials to complete each assignment. Additionally, using checklists and timers can help children/teens stay on task. It is important to have a good sense of what is most distracting to your child/teen and to discuss ways that may best work for them to minimize those distractions.

3) Don’t Forget About Stress and Fatigue

Even when it may feel like there isn’t enough time to complete an assignment, it is important to know when to take a break. Fatigue and stress can greatly impact one’s ability to focus and engage with school work. Sometimes, stress and fatigue can also manifest as physical symptoms like stomach aches, irritability, and/or frustration, generally leading to greater difficulties around completing assignments. Self-monitoring is an aspect of executive functioning that enables us to evaluate how an assignment or project is going. It may be worthwhile to have a conversation with your child/teen about how to notice signs of fatigue and create a routine around taking breaks. Brief breaks in between assignments can help recharge the necessary executive functions, leading to more sustained and consistent effort on assignments.

4) Praise Effort, Work Ethic, and Growth

While executive functions are necessary to effectively manage and complete work, attitudes toward school can also impact a child’s academic motivation. Encouragement goes a long way, especially during times in which children may be feeling ambivalent about school. Focusing too much on what your child did incorrectly on homework assignments frequently leads to arguments and frustration for all. This can result in overly negative associations with homework and even negative self-perceptions around their own abilities. Furthermore, it may discourage them from seeking out help with schoolwork in the future. Instead, it can be helpful to shift feedback to focus on effort, work ethic, and growth rather than their ability to complete assignments perfectly. It is important to always provide encouragement and praise your child when you “catch” them hard at work and/or improving.

5) Model a Positive Attitude Toward Schoolwork

Children learn so much about how to understand the world around them from their parents. Right now, the idea of school and the implications of remote learning can be very frustrating for children and parents alike. For parents, it is important to be mindful of how school is discussed with or around their child, as it can greatly influence their child’s perceptions of school. When parents react negatively to aspects of remote learning and/or implementation of educational curriculum, children hear and internalize that feedback and likely will form similar views of the work they are expected to complete. Modeling a positive attitude while at the same time acknowledging the challenges present with remote learning can help children feel understood and also help them to sustain a positive attitude toward school.

Support is Available!

For parents, sometimes it may feel like they don’t know how to best help their child with schoolwork. In some cases, there may be factors unique to your child that make completing school work a challenge. Various learning disorders and even social-emotional factors can make engaging executive functioning skills incredibly difficult. If you are concerned that your child is struggling with school work, contact SVPS to schedule an intake with our diagnostic clinic to help assist in the process of determining how best to support your child.