Learning is not only limited within the walls of the classroom. If you want your child to learn easily anywhere, you need to build the right perspective and behaviour about learning first at home. You want to instill love for learning early in childhood so your child can take it wherever he or she goes. Here several tips you can try to boost your child’s motivation to learn:
- Start a reading habit at home involving the whole family. You can try reading a storybook before bedtime or initiate a family reading time as a regular routine in your household.
- Encourage your child to to express ideas, talk about feelings and make decisions through everyday life experiences. You can try to ask about their day at school or ask their opinion while reading a book or watching a TV show together.
- Show your support and enthusiasm for your child's interests and challenge them to explore subjects that fascinate them. Try to provide educational tools and facilities to support their interest and encourage your kids to use them properly.
- Introduce your child to different kinds of learning styles. Observe which style your child enjoys the most and learn how you can provide them with the right support and materials according to that learning style.
- Try to share what you have just learned recently with enthusiasm, so they learn that you enjoy learning as well. Teach by being a good example for your child. Discuss how you find new information and you can teach your child to try it as well.
- If you want to ask about school, don’t ask about grades or test scores. Try asking about what your children learned at school and ask them to explain or show you what the lesson was.
- Monitor your child’s school assignments, so you know when they need help from you. If your child can’t finish the task easily, don’t stress out but try to help instead. Finishing homework or solving difficult lessons together can gain your child’s confidence. It also allows them to learn how to solve problems from you.
- Positive reinforcement will encourage your children to keep learning and challenging themselves. You can give them some form of reward after completing a difficult task at school or after finishing a book you asked them to read.
- Focus on your child’s true talents. Not every child is gifted with academic talents, some are interested more in other fields or discipline. Try to support the interests and talents of your child and always offer help when your child has difficulties with lessons and assignments.
- Learning opportunities can be found anytime, anywhere. You can try to ask questions or initiate small discussions related to school subjects or common knowledge while doing daily activities with your child (i.e. shopping the groceries or taking a walk in the park).