You read to your child every day when they were little and you made them
repeat their multiplication tables to you until they memorized all the way
through the twelve’s, but now that they are older, their schoolwork is
different. Don’t be afraid of high school course material; you don’t have to do
it or even understand it, just pay attention.
Try to keep the lines of communication
open with your child. In the course of your daily conversation, ask about
what they are learning in school. If they tell you “nothing” as teenagers
are prone to do, be more specific in your questioning. Ask what part of
history they are learning about or what book they are reading in English.
You don’t need a complete run down everyday; just try to be aware of the
kinds of subject they are studying.
Check over homework at least
occasionally just like you did in elementary school. High school students
typically have homework daily, so if you are getting the “I don’t have
any” line daily, be suspect and check in with teachers, especially in the
core subjects: math, social studies, science and English. Even if you
don’t feel qualified to check to see if their work is accurate, at least
you can see what types of assignments they have and how complete their
work looks.
Set rules about homework.
Decide when and where it is to be done every day. The best time is as soon
as they get home from school or practice, although most teenagers would
prefer to procrastinate until about 2:00
a.m. Try to get them to study away from the television or
stereo so that they can concentrate.
Be aware of upcoming tests
and projects. Many high school students will withhold this sort of
information from parents, but if you work at building a supportive rather
than strictly authoritative relationship with your child around their
schoolwork, they may be more willing to let you in on this information.
They might even let you quiz them on test information or help them with
homework. If so, try to help them without doing the work yourself and if
you realize you don’t know the information, try to help your child find a
resource that can help them.
If you notice your child is
struggling with his or her academic subjects, consider a tutor. High
school subjects can be more demanding and rigorous, so if they struggle
they may get behind quickly. Don’t wait to see how it goes, take action by
working with teachers, counselors and tutoring centers.