Here we go – another school year begins and we start tearing our hair out finding ways to get our kids to focus on school work, keep up to date with the curriculum and revise in good time. Take heart- you are not alone in this agonizing task. It’s not one for the faint-hearted to take head on but equipped with the right set of tools and solutions, there is light at the end of the tunnel. What with busy school days, heaps of extra-curricular activities that are just as critical to complement academic excellence, and the ever increasing presence of electronic foes in the guise of PS4, Wiis, X-Boxes etc., where and how do you fit in the extra old fashioned hard graft that we all know pays dividends in the end.
After waffling through many ways and means trying to find what works best, and fighting desperation all along, I now follow a few methods, all of which seem to work.
Inspector Clueso
Making the task in hand seem less like work and more like a game, where your kids have to unravel the mysteries that surround the question in hand: Playing detective, on a mission to unravel the secrets that veil the answer can be challenging and exciting. Especially with comprehension and poetry, deducing and reading between the lines, recalling imagery, evoking emotions and feelings and empathising with the writer and his perspective, all help focus the mind and help lead to the right conclusions. Weaving idioms into everyday discussions also add to the tool-kit the kids can use when interpreting tricky passages.
Ring Of Words
Expanding vocabulary on a daily basis is a challenge. We have a “ring of words”, (quite literally!) – little flash cards of vocabulary hanging on a ring that ‘lives’ in the car; wherever and whenever we drive, me and the boys pick up a word to play with – and have a go at making sentences and forming associations with everyday life. When a few new words have been learnt, stringing them together and weaving them into daily life helps retention – how often have my kids heard me say, “You know I am fastidious about augmenting your vocabulary, to enable you to be more articulate and not doing so makes me so irate; stop being capricious… being morose and despondent will not alter my perseverance as I know you have an innate talent for comprehending new words quickly“! They know exactly what I mean – go figure.
Online Tutoring
Every hard working mom can do with a helping hand. I have found the ideal solution. I stumbled upon Edufied, a web-based tutoring portal. Edufied offered a compelling solution: tuition on tap, when you need, where you need it, at your convenience and without you having to leave home, battle with traffic, miss dinner etc.! I found my boys receptive to this style of tuition and learning; it didn’t feel like work to them. They were operating on a medium they love – computers/IT/screen time – using electronic tablets to work out problems on a white board, that both the tutor and student can see, provided a novel and exciting way to work out sums. It took the boredom out of the learning and allowed revisions to be fun for the kids and economical for me (much cheaper than in-person tutoring). Furthermore, one of the many advantages was being able to take the tuition sessions with you, wherever you go (when on holiday/visiting grandparents etc.) without breaking the routine or having to change tutors.
Check out www.edufied.net for more information or contact Ankit, founder of Edufied on anksarora2000@yahoo.com and quote this blog for a discounted rate.
If you liked these tips, stay tuned for future pointers and although it may seem to be a case of ‘Easier said than done’ – but believe me, try all the above tips and then come back for some more. Ciao – until the next time.