Tips and Tricks

Five Proven Ways You Can Help Your Child Succeed at Primary School

As parents, we all want our children to succeed academically and develop a love for learning.

While teachers play a vital role in a child's education, parents also significantly influence their child's academic success.

Implementing a few proven strategies can help you create a supportive and enriching environment that nurtures your child's growth and development.

Establish a Consistent Routine

The term "Routine" will hardly send your pulse racing with excitement, but it’s an often overlooked factor in parenting success.

Kids crave stability and predictability, as they feel safe and in control. Sometimes, they use predictability against their parents (“Can’t I stay up later than 7 o’clock tonight?”), but routines mostly serve kids and parents well.

Establishing a daily routine with set times for waking up, meals, homework and bedtime can help children develop good habits and manage their time effectively.

Set a Regular Bedtime

School success is enhanced when a child’s physical needs are met. Sleep is perhaps the trickiest yet most vital part of the eat, play and sleep physical triangle to meet.

According to the latest sleep research, maintaining consistent bedtimes and wake times is crucial in ensuring your child gets a good night’s sleep. Another important aspect is establishing a 45-60-minute bedtime routine eg. change into drink a warm cup of milk, put on pyjamas, brush teeth, go to the toilet, read a story, lights out. A well-rested child is more alert, focused and ready to learn. No devices in bedrooms or for the hour before bed-time.

Create a Study Schedule

“Homework,” “Reading time,” “Project work.” Regardless of the grade, kids usually have some tasks each night, ranging from reading books in the early years to doing assignment work in the later years.

Designate a specific time each day for homework and study. This helps children develop a routine and reduces procrastination. When my children were in primary school, I preferred doing homework before the evening meal. However, this didn’t work when after-school sports had to be negotiated, so we learned to be flexible with individual study schedules.

Include Breaks, Downtime and Short burst work

Children will do their best work when they are rested so help them balance work with free time. Discuss the need to take short breaks, particularly if they are working in front of a screen.

Some children, especially boys, will do their best work in short bursts so consider introducing time limits for their work.

Expert tip: When setting routines, involve children in age-appropriate ways. When kids have input into a decision, they’re likely to stick to it. It is important to be consistent, even when you are tired or have other things happening. Consistency for children is vital.

Send your child to school ready to learn

A nutritious breakfast fuels up kids and gets them ready for the day. Help boost your child's attention span, concentration, and memory with breakfast foods that are rich in whole grains, fiber, and protein, and low in added sugar.