How to motivate a child to study?

August 21 2023

Ro When a child starts school education, parents ask themselves: How to motivate a child to learn, convince a toddler to do homework systematically? There are also situations in which a parent wonders how to motivate a child to go to school and how to effectively encourage them to learn. 

In this article, we suggest how to motivate your child to learn in the right way.

Jak force child going to school, where to look for the causes of problems with learning motivation?

When a child reluctantly sits down to read books, avoids doing homework, or flatly refuses to attend classes, the basic question parents ask is: Jak force child going to school, are there effective ways to motivate you to learn?

Of course, compulsory education in Poland is an indisputable fact, but it should not be a key argument when we try to convince a child to study. Coercion, pressure and moralizing are never effective ways to encourage a child to learn (both 10 and 17 year olds).

Justyna Hermaniuk

Psychologist at the Department of Early Psychological Intervention and the Day Rehabilitation Center for Children, Institute of Mother and Child

The expert advises:

Instead of figuring out how to get your child to go to school, get to the root of the problem. Maybe the child has gone through a difficult time in life (e.g. parents' divorce, moving house) and has arrears that he cannot cope with? Or maybe the student feels rejected by his classmates, perhaps there are misunderstandings in the relationship with one of the teachers? How to force a child to go to school? Remember - do not force - instead of coercion, it is worth focusing on, among others: honest conversation with the child, teachers, school counselor. 

In this text, we focus on how to convince a child to learn, so if the reason for reluctance to go to school is lack of motivation and difficulties in acquiring knowledge, in the further part of the article we present proven ways to support your child in learning.

Jak we want motivate your child to learn: plet's help him better organize his time and place of work

Many parents mistakenly assume that their children can organize their own after school education. After all, they know best what their assignments are, what reading and tests the teacher has announced in the near future. If we want to convince a child to learn, first of all we should focus on teaching him… how to learn.

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Anna Milewska

Senior specialist in the Department of Assessment and Cooperation Development, Institute of Mother and Child

Many students feel overwhelmed by the excess of tasks and announced quizzes, they do not know how to organize their learning, how to reconcile systematic work with the desire to have fun and meet friends, with free time?

Jak we wish encourage your child to learn: we need to help him get organized on the basics

  • Place to study: zolet's organize a quiet "science corner" at home. Let's buy a comfortable chair, table or desk adapted to the child's height, let's take care of eye-friendly lighting, let's find a drawer or a box for school and art supplies. If we want to encourage the child to learn, let's involve them in organizing such a work corner.
  • Study plan and systematic work schedule: from the first days at school, we teach the toddler how to divide the didactic material into smaller parts. Let's show that systematic work is less stressful than postponing all learning for the so-called. "last minute".

If we want to encourage a 10-year-old child to learn, it is also worth showing him the system of working in blocks of time. Let's set the timer for 30 minutes of study, followed by a 5-10 minute break, e.g. to use the toilet, stretch at the desk.

Jak we want encourage your child to learn: let's rethink our way of communicating with the student

Let's remember to Don't be critical of your child eg. You got a bad grade again, you're good for nothing!and don't compare your child to others. We also do not moralize a young man with words such as: Jand at your age I studied and took care of two more siblings, what about you?! We also try do not scare the child, saying: If you don't study, you won't achieve anything in life / you'll be digging ditches!

Such sentences, although they seem "true" and "life", are not supportive for the child, but they can contribute to lowering self-esteemand an increase in reluctance to go to school.

Justyna Hermaniuk

Psychologist at the Department of Early Psychological Intervention and the Day Rehabilitation Center for Children, Institute of Mother and Child

The expert advises:

To motivate your child to learn, try to remind him of his own progress. "Remember, not so long ago you didn't know the multiplication table, and now you're doing it wonderfully!" Thinking about how to properly encourage a child to learn - let's try to praise the student when we see that he works hard and tries, even if he does not achieve the expected success. How else can we convince a child to learn? Let's not only highlight errors, e.g. in calculations or spelling. Let's also tell the child about what we like about his work:See, there's a miscalculation here, but the reasoning itself is very good, keep it up!"

Let's not underestimate failures, e.g.: Nothing happened, it's just a bad judgment, the world won't collapse. It is better to name the child's feelings, show him understanding and support, e.g.: I can see that you must be sorry because…. I get it, you have a right to feel that way, you cared a lot. How can I help you, do you have any ideas?.

Jak still can convince your child to learn: 5 proven tips

First: let's help the child take care of basic needs

Adequate sleep, a healthy diet and hydration, a daily dose of physical activity, time for socializing and rest are elements of everyday life as important as acquiring knowledge. If we want to effectively motivate a child to learn, we must teach the student good time management throughout the day.

Second: let's show smart learning methods

How to encourage a 10-year-old child to learn is best by showing effective methods facilitating the acquisition of knowledge, including: associations, highlighting with colors, index cards, erasable boards, mind maps

Third: let's show the meaning of science

It is worth showing him the sense of acquiring knowledge - this can be useful in finding an answer to the question of how to motivate a child to learn. Let's take the student to an appropriate museum and warn him with humor that he will be our guide, eg in the history of Polish kings. How to convince a child to learn geometry? Ask for help in calculating the area of ​​​​the carpet / tablecloth in the house that we want to replace with a new one.

  • Do not help your child learn: do not provide ready-made solutions, rather show where you can find the information/materials you need. Support, but at the same time encourage independence, which will give the child the most satisfaction.
  • As a parent, set a good example for your child: reading books regularly, finding an interesting passion, or maybe participating in a professional course?

These are just some of the ideas on how to encourage your child to learn - it's worth trying them out and finding the methods that work best for the student.

In the event of major difficulties in assimilating knowledge, it is worth seeking advice from the school counselor and teachers, as well as consulting the child in a psychological and pedagogical counseling centre.

Author

Justyna Hermaniuk

Psychologist at the Department of Early Psychological Intervention and the Day Rehabilitation Center for Children, Institute of Mother and Child

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