In the current situation, education for children poses a certain amount of challenge and a threat to their sanity. There’s a lot of load and pressure on the children to excel in every arena. As the year goes by, the competition all around the world increases and the children are pushed into this rat race at a very early age.
Some parents want their children to become the valedictorian of their school while someone want to bring up a doctor. As the parents project their own aspirations upon their children, the kids are unnecessarily pressured and lose their innocence at a young age. They mature fast and are always looking to compete.
Oftentimes the built up aspirations affect the children in a big way. It stresses out the students as they strive to excel at everything while maintain a stable and disciplined life. Thus, they strive to ace their athletics, and the surprise tests arranged at school.
Moreover, the emphasis that is laid upon homework further demotivates them. Imagine a child working throughout the year, without any break, attending 8 hours of classes every day, participating in co-curricular activities and then devoting 4 hours every day to homework. No wonder, kids nowadays suffer from anxiety attacks and depression!
“It’s not the load that breaks you down; it’s the way you carry.â€
8 smart ways to bust that homework stress
Is your children on of those many who suffer from anxiety attacks at the mention of homework? Do you think your child is overworked? Well, then it is imperative that you start paying attention to their needs.
While it is imperative to get a good education, however, it is not that important to partake in the rat race. Your child can carve out their own niche, if given a chance. However, for starters, you need to pay heed to the fact that your child is not stressed. If they are, then take a look below to find out ways to bust that stress.
- Make them plan ahead
Planning is essential if you want your child to complete their homework.It is imperative that you plan your child’s homework and set a particular time for them to work upon it. Like for example, if they have an English assignment to submit on Friday and a math assignment to be submitted on Wednesday, then start working on the math first.
Also, schedule it in such way so that they can sort through it easily, without burning out much of their energy. For example, some work at their optimum best when they come back from school, whereas others work best after dinner.
- Teach them about time management
Time management is crucial as it allows the students to work efficiently. As parents, it is important that you teach your kids to juggle their various activities and manage time. School life is full of activities and kids need to learn how to juggle between that and homework and not be stressed about it. So, make sure that they devote only a specified amount of time to a particular question and proceed to the other if they fail to comprehend it.
- Create an environment that is conducive to learning
The child feels the stress of homework because that’s the kind of environment that is prevalent in your house. Your child needs to feel safe and relax at home, so that they can concentrate on their work and not feel the added pressure.
So, ensure that the house is free from all forms of noises while your child keeps working on their homework. Also, ensure that you or any of your relative doesn’t hover around the kid while they work. Let them work on their own and only after they finish it, can you go check.
- Do not allow them procrastinate
Procrastination is the biggest problem that a child faces. It is the main cause for most of the stress that homework causes. Many children pile up homework in the hope that they will work upon it later. The causes for this are various, lack of energy, motivation and many such other reasons. The pile keeps on getting bigger until one day arrives when they have to work on that entire pile in some few hours and that stresses them out. Ensure that your kids complete their daily dose of homework and do not procrastinate.
- Elaborate on the importance of studying smartly
In order to beat the stress, you child needs to study smartly to complete their homework. Ensure that they assign only a certain amount of time to each topic and do not exceed. Make them use flash cards and other memory tricks to learn better and faster. Also, ensure that they take short breaks in between their study sessions. Studying for long hours proves to be counterproductive and actually results in dullness.
- Encourage them to attend classes
Attending classes is as important as completing homework daily. In classes, half of the lesson is learnt and the brain has a good capacity for retaining such information. If they pay attention in class, they would be less stressed about their homework. This is because once they go back home, all they need to do is recapitulate what has been taught in class and elaborate upon it a bit to catch up.
- Integrate activities
It is essential that you integrate some activities along with these study sessions to provide some relief from stress associated with completing their homework.
You can allow them to watch TV or some movie that they like, make them listen to songs that interest them or even make them dance around. Activities stimulate the brain that allows them to get rid of that stress.
- Limit the time allotted for homework
Oftentimes, many children are seen working on their homework for four hours or so. It is completely inhuman to expect children to work for such long hours and also at a time when they are least capable of doing so. It is important that you limit the homework time to one or two hours, depending upon the volume of homework they receive. Do not make them a minute more than that.
Some other tips to bust stress
Other than the above mentioned tips, it is essential that you see to it that your child sleeps for eight long hours. It stimulates the growth of the body and ensures the proper functioning of the brain. Make sure that they at right and exercise as well.
However, if your child suffers from severe stress, then it would be better that you seek counsel for such cases. You can try to put off homework for a month. Wondering how they will ever get the requisite grades? Well, there’s online websites for that. There are various educational websites online that help students to finish their assignments and often finish it on their behalf. You can ask for their help while providing some respite to your child.
The mental health of your children is very important. Remember to treat them like a child and do not rob them of their innocence. Education is a learning process that helps them to grow into their mature selves. In the process of educating them, do not rob them of their sanity. Let them work on their own and win their own battles.