How can you as parents encourage and help your children prepare for the second half of the year? Here are some ideas to get them back to the grind!

• Ensure revision is done

Start off the new term on the right track! Make sure that the homework issued before the break has been completed.

Your children’s holiday homework were likely review worksheets to help them reinforce their understanding in the topics covered during the first half of the year. A strong and solid foundation will help pave the way for a greater understanding of the newer topics that will be introduced in the latter half of the year.

• Teach them how to embrace failure

Are your children fearful of a certain subject ever since they achieved less than stellar results during the mid- year exams? Help them quell their fears.

The fear of failure hinders the willingness to explore and discover the subject, beyond the confines of the exams’ requirements.

By instilling the mind-set that failure is only temporary, your children will be motivated to strive harder to achieve better results in the next exam. It’s all about moving forward, and focusing on how to improve their grades.

• Recognise areas to improve

Teachers play an integral role in this area with their intrusive marking and constant tracking of results. 

Be kept in the loop of your children’s progress by establishing a solid communication channel with your children’s teachers.

Your children’s teachers should update you with a progress report before the examinations, so that you and your children are clear about the areas of strengths and weaknesses.

At home, creating study plans in order of priority would be more effective in tackling the weaker topics. For easy reference, it would be good to file previous worksheets neatly. By establishing these good habits, it reminds your children that they are in control of their grades!

• Set realistic goals

Have a chat with your children to plan ahead and set key goals to achieve at crucial points in the semester. That way, they will have a clear direction to work towards.

If additional help is needed to brush up on particular topics, it is not too late to seek assistance. At the end of every class at The Learning Lab, your children will be provided with a key summary of notes and additional materials that will expose them to a variety of question types, as well as common pitfalls that many students face.

• Encourage them to believe in themselves!

It is important for children to be encouraged to give their best no matter what. Constant assurance that it is their effort that counts the most, regardless of the final results, may even boost their confidence and give them the added push to excel!

All in all, the focus should never solely be on outstanding grades. Whilst there will always be a high priority on achievement and progress, emphasis should always be placed on encouraging your child to love learning beyond the classroom.

After all, the purpose of education is to help students develop a lifelong love of learning.