Wenn das Lernen schwierig wird

Ten FIT-Z tips for school parents

1. Rules and rituals help:

Boundaries and fixed routines do not only restrict, but also provide stability. This makes it easier for children to devote themselves to school if they reserve a specific time each day for it. Afterwards there should also be real free time. A daily shared family meal can also be part of these rituals.

2. Learning to learn:

Sing and dance English vocabulary or paint pictures for it, create a memory card for genetics, invent a memory game for details of the French Revolution. Learning is easier with varied techniques. Also important: avoid distractions from the phone, little siblings or other "troublemakers" and, especially when faced with a mountain of work, take breaks.

3. Another bad grade?

Instead of scolding, parents should comfort. Accusations won't help the child. It's better to ask the child about the reasons and for their suggestions to get better grades in the future. This could be, for example, tutoring, extra study time, or learning software. Parents should not accept being dismissed if the child blames the teacher for their failure. The child must take responsibility themselves.

4. Motivation as the key to success:

So that frustrated children can apply energy and perseverance to school, they need a boost of motivation that parents can trigger. One of the miracle remedies is praise. So mom or dad can certainly acknowledge when the child, instead of dawdling, quickly gets to their homework. Or when they improve from a "5" to a "4". In addition, successes in sports or another hobby help prevent self-esteem from plummeting.

Kinder zum Lernen motivieren | Mutter und Tochter sitzen entspannt auf der Couch und lachen

5. Abitur or rather happy?

If the child, despite all efforts, isn't getting anywhere, an honest assessment helps: Maybe they are overwhelmed at their current school? School counseling can help. If the Gymnasium (academic secondary school) is the problem: even without the Abitur, children can make their way.

6. To be honest

.... If parents are worried, they are allowed to say so. After all, their aim is to prepare their child for an independent, happy life. It is, however, quite normal that mothers and fathers don't always know what they can reasonably expect of their child and what they can't. Despite all the uncertainty: the child deserves trust and will do everything to not disappoint it.

7. Teenagers are 'freedom fighters':

They are practicing adulthood and detach from their parents in small steps, which makes letting go difficult for the parents. Despite their prickliness, children need support, backing and the assurance that mom and dad's love is not dependent on school grades. The recommendation: don't push yourself on them when there are problems, but show openness and interest and keep talking.

8. 'Closed for remodeling':

During the teenage years the brain reorganizes. This reordering in the head also affects the brain area responsible for planning, risk assessment and evaluations. During the remodeling phase, young people, for example, have problems behaving rationally, understanding messages or "reading" emotions. That explains a lot, doesn't it?

9. Be lenient with 'night owls':

The school start times in Germany make it hard for teens to be at their best in class early in the morning. During puberty the sleep hormone melatonin is released later. That's why children find it so hard to go to bed in the evening and just as hard to get up in the morning.

10. When it's the 'I don't care' phase:

Experienced teachers know that from the middle of 7th grade students become more difficult, unfocused, unmotivated. Sometime in 9th grade the upheaval settles: grades improve again, the children become more agreeable. Parents should not take provocative behavior personally. The children are looking for a strong counterpart to rub against. And they do that where they can have the most impact.