The Suburban's Education/Activity Fair

The Suburban's 2nd annual Education/Activity Fair is this Sunday at the Marriott Courtyard Hotel, 700 Place Robert Joncas, St-Laurent, facing the Spheretech. This is a great opportunity to find out what resources are available in Montreal and for you to be proactive in understand what is going on in the education sector. I plan to be there and so should you!

OPENING THE DOORS OF COMMUNICATION

Sigh of relief. School has started. That last week of vacation was chaotic: getting all the school supplies together, re-integrating the concepts of routine and scheduling into your household. You’re exhausted. But you can’t relax yet; life is chaotic and you are just sooooo busy! It seems like it never stops; there’s always something to do; a child to drive to an activity, dinner to prepare, homework to do, showers, bedtime stories. And then there’s our day jobs. Overworked and overbooked seem like understatements at this point.

But even with the busy-life syndrome that we all face, you still want to take responsibility for your child’s educational path. You don’t want to make any excuses when it comes to academics. So you look at your checklist to see what’s left to do:

School supplies: CHECK

Schedule: CHECK

Routine: CHECK

Supportive heart-to-heart conversation: CHECK

What’s next? OPEN THE DOORS OF COMMUNICATION WITH THE SCHOOL!

I’ve heard parents complain time and time again that they go to their child’s ‘meet the teacher night’ and have homework time every (or most) nights. But that when report cards come out in November, their child’s grades are not necessarily up to par. Let’s get organized and take preventative measures to get your child on track NOW!

The first step is maintaining regular communication with your child’s teachers. Parents sometimes think that they’re doing this by reading their child’s agenda every night. But this is not always enough. Has your child written down everything he/she was supposed to in the agenda? Instead of playing a guessing game, maintain regular contact with your child’s teachers to make sure that you and your child are on track. By contacting your child's teachers by email or telephone on a weekly basis, you will be able to find out what is happening in the classroom. You will also be teaching your child about how to get information that he/she needs to be successful. Some questions to ask are:

· What is the homework for the upcoming week?

· What does my child need to work on?

· Are there any tests/group projects coming up?

· What needs to be studied for these tests?

· Who is my child grouped with for his/her project?

· Is there an outline to follow?

· Is there anything else I should know?

Remember: When you are contacting a teacher, you want to keep a positive tone. You are asking the teacher to work with you to ensure that your child succeeds. YOU NEED THE TEACHER TO BE ON YOUR SIDE. Also, don’t forget that teachers are very busy too, so if they do not respond to you in a timely manner, don’t be afraid to follow-up politely.

By working with your child’s teacher, you will be provided with valuable information that will help him/her to succeed. You will also be able to better organize homework time, which may even shorten it. Lastly, since the expectations of the school work will be clearly defined by the teacher, you will find that the time you were spending playing the homework guessing game will quickly transform into extra quality time with your child.

If you have a specific question or topic that you would like to see in my next blog, email me at robin@brightsidelearning.com

Everybody's Making Excuses

Recently, I was listening to a mom complain that her daughter had not learned ANYTHING in school-- FOR THE PAST FOUR YEARS! And guess what? She is convinced that this year will be the same. At the risk of sounding fed-up, I must admit that I do not blame this mother for her attitude. After working in the education sector for the past 10 years, I've found that this mother's concern is all too common. As a former teacher, parents would often confide in me that they were at a stand-still and did not know what to do to help their children achieve academic success. They saw excuses being made at every corner and were frustrated by the endless blame-chain. The magic question becomes: what are parents going to do about it?

In order to help your kids get set-up for success this years, let's stop making excuses. This is a no-more excuses blog. Let's interact with our kids' teachers. Let's hold people responsible where responsibility is due. No more will we accept the excuse of 'the dog ate my homework.' We need to find a way for each child to benefit from our education system and it all starts with advocacy. Let's become involved in our children's academic careers by being their personal cheerleaders and advocates. Are you ready? Let's get started!

Here are five strategies that will help your kids start this school year off on the right foot:

1. Get your kids excited about school supply shopping! We all know that dragging children with us from store to store can be a long, drawn out and sometimes frustrating experience. But the benefits of allowing them to choose their supplies are enormous. They will become excited, take better care of their materials and use them more frequently. Ultimately, this encourages children to be actively involved and responsible for their own education.
2. Get your kids into a routine before school begins. At least one week before the first day of classes, begin to implement an earlier bedtime and a morning schedule. Go over your child's routine for the school year. When will homework time be? Will a tutor be needed? Is there an after school program to attend? What time is dinner? When will bedtime be? Answering all of these questions will help define your child's routine, providing a sense of stability and reducing stress for everyone.
   
3. Discuss the expectations for the upcoming school year. Children are more likely to do well academically when they work in structured, clearly defined environments. Make sure your child knows what can be done if there is trouble or difficulty meeting these expectations.
   
4. Show your child that you are excited about the back-to-school season! Our children feed off of our emotions and behaviors. Model the attitude that you would like your child to exhibit during the upcoming school year. Don't forget, it's okay to over-exaggerate being excited, happy and optimistic!
5. Give your child a supportive pep-talk. Explain that you will be actively involved in their school life and that you want to make sure they're getting everything that is needed. You will be there for support, to talk to teachers on their behalf, arrange for tutoring if necessary and be their number one fan!

School life is not always easy but having a game plan makes a difference! Please remember that there is no single or perfect solution but that advocating for your child will create positive change. And of course, advocating means taking responsibility; you can teach your child first-hand how not to blame the dog.

If you have a specific question or topic that you would like to see in my next blog, email me at robin@brightsidelearning.com