Helping your child with their homework can be a really good way to encourage their learning and maximise their potential. The BBC have compiled an extensive list of top tips which you can use when working with your child on their homework, here are a few of our favourites:
• Find a quiet place at home to use as a homework area. It needs a flat surface, a good light source and the right equipment – e.g. pens, pencils, ruler, scissors, glue
• Be aware of modern teaching methods that are used in the national curriculum; avoid teaching your child the methods you used at school as it is likely to differ and could confuse them
• Plan a homework timetable and agree which subjects you will help your child with on which days
• Suggest that you and your child both have a nutritional snack before you start as ‘brain food’
• Ask questions about how your child’s homework relates to their lessons at school – this can encourage them to be more proactive with their learning and avoid them ‘letting you do it’.
• Don’t give your child the answer in order to get the task finished more quickly. Instead, look it up together on the internet or explore a dictionary for different meanings
• Try and keep homework time as a fun activity that you both look forward to. It should be valuable time for you and your child to bond!
To find out more about this, including specific advice for maths and reading, visit the BBC’s website – http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/parents/primary_support/