It's painful to know that your child isn't performing as well as you hoped at school. As a parent, you feel like a failure because you thought you had already done everything to provide for your child. Before you start blaming yourself or get angry at your child for weak performance, it's crucial for you to think about what to do about the problem, and how you can provide better support.
Talk to the teachers
The first thing to do is to have a conference with the teachers. Ask them which areas your child is struggling with and the possible reasons behind it. You can also ask about poor performance during tests and why your child can't keep up. The teachers interact with your child each day, and they can provide a more accurate description of your child's academic performance.
Talk to other parents
It also helps if you discuss with other parents. They might give you some tips on what they do with their kids to help them improve their performance at school. You can learn from their strategies, especially those who have kids that struggled academically in the past but have already improved drastically.
Have an honest conversation with your child
There are instances when you can't believe that your child is academically weak, especially when you saw how your child performed before. If you feel like there's a problem apart from mental capacity, you need to know about it. Perhaps, your child doesn't like the school, or there are issues with their classmates. Interaction in class could also have a significant impact on their academic outcome. It might help if you find a way to solve any underlying problems first, so you can deal with the educational issues.
Review the lessons at home
Perhaps, the lessons at school are difficult, and it’s crucial for kids to continue learning at home. Unfortunately, you’re not there to provide additional support. It could be the reason why your child is behind everyone else. It means that you need to ensure a few minutes each day to help your child with homework and additional lessons at home. It also promotes bonding between the two of you. If you worry that you can’t give the correct answers, you need to learn those lessons first. A tutor might also help if you think that there’s a reliable person you can hire to do the job.
Opt for educational apps
If you want your kids to enjoy and learn at the same time, you can consider downloading educational apps. You can opt for paid apps like Kidsmart which are beneficial for children ages 4-11.
These apps will provide support in areas of difficulty. They will also allow your kids to learn in a stress-free environment. You can check the different apps available and determine which of them would be suitable for the learning level of your child.
Use online resources
Nowadays everything is a click away, there are many online resources that can be used to help children prepare for their exams and improve academic performance. For example there are free 11 plus past papers online that you can download and use for your children.
Don’t freak out when you think your child’s academic performance is terrible. It’s not the end, and you can still do something about it.
