Table of Contents
This is a collaborative post.
There have been a few arguments recently on whether children in the UK receive too much homework. There are arguments supporting both sides, with those arguing for and against homework citing different studies. However, regardless of the side you support, the underlying consensus is that parents helping their children with homework is vital. Beyond being a parent’s responsibility, doing so is crucial for a child’s academic growth and has numerous other benefits too.
It Helps Keep Children Motivated
Children who do not receive the necessary academic support from their parents and teachers are less likely to know how to overcome obstacles when they encounter them. Because they do not find ways of dealing with challenges, they are more likely to become demotivated. If this happens for long enough, they might even lose interest in learning, which will have long-term effects on their academics and other parts of their lives.
It Provides Opportunities to Spend Time Together
Sadly, many parents do not spend as much time with their children as they should because of how busy their lives are. Spending time with children, especially when they are young, helps create strong connections that last long into adulthood.
Spending time with children also shows them you can make time for them and are available to help whenever they need you. Sometimes the relationship and bonds formed when doing homework can lead to your children feeling free enough to open up about something they may be going through.
Contrary to what most parents assume, children also face challenges outside their academics. They need someone to be there for them and to provide the support they need to work through what they are facing. Sometimes a listening ear, even if it is just an hour or two spent helping them with their homework, can be helpful in ways that might be difficult for parents to understand.
It Helps with Subject and Skill Retention
Parents can go into more depth about specific skills and subjects at home away from the distractions and pressure children often face at school. Doing so allows them to understand the subject better, leading to better academic outcomes.
Children also remember the time they spend with their parents getting the assistance they need with challenging subjects or topics. The parents’ involvement, therefore, becomes a catalyst for remembering this material and is one of the reasons it is associated with better academic performance.
Expanding on Topics and Subjects
Going back to the argument about children receiving too much homework, many feel children are expected to learn too much both at school and home in very little time. While parents can blame this on school curricula, they can also take the initiative to ensure their children learn the right way while at home.
Helping them with their homework is an excellent way of doing this because parents can spend a lot of time on one or two topics and expand on topics in ways a teacher might not be able to with the limited time they have.
It Allows Children to Form Their Own Thoughts
Children are taught and allowed to think for themselves. Sometimes that takes the form of speaking their minds or having enough time to formulate their thoughts and present them in a way that works best for them. Parents can encourage this by sitting with them for an hour or two every day listening, talking to them, and giving them the time they need to learn and understand in ways that work best for them.
This type of learning can have excellent outcomes, especially for kids who might not want to speak out in front of others because they are afraid of what they will think about their thought processes. Home should be a safe place for them to do so, with their parents supporting them and showing them there are different ways to work through things.
Participation Can Engrain Positive Learning Behaviours
Children who have negative experiences at school typically have worse outcomes. Yelling or other forms of discipline can worsen the issue, especially if they are receiving this at school and home.
Instead of making things worse, parents can provide the support their children need to create a better environment than the one they receive at school. By doing so and helping them with their homework, parents can engrain positive learning behaviours.
An additional benefit is reduced absenteeism because pupils will be more confident attending classes with what they have learned at home.
Introducing New Learning Materials
In addition to the standard homework material that teachers require pupils to complete, parents can introduce ones they think their children would benefit from. It can be as simple as starting a book writing project or teaching them computer skills.
There is no shortage of free and paid material that parents can introduce to their children to teach them new skills, topics, and subjects beyond what they learn from school. However, many of these materials come in PDF formats that can be difficult to work with. Consider using PDF to Word conversion tools to make them editable and easy to use for your kids. Easy-to-use software that enables this is readily available for parents who want to prepare such materials for their kids.
Doing the above is part of what experts call project-based learning. Here, parents complete a project with their children that interests them. It can be something separate from what they learn in school, or something they discuss with their children’s teachers.
These projects should be fun, so the children are happy to get involved. However, parents should ensure the children take complete ownership so that they have a sense of accomplishment when they finish their projects.
Project-based learning also provides more time for parents to spend with their children beyond what they would if they were helping them with regular homework. They can also share their joy when they complete a project or achieve a goal, which can be the motivation they need to do more in the future.
It Helps Parents Assess Children’s Strengths and Progress
It can be difficult to know how a child is progressing academically or socially if a parent is not involved. Helping with homework provides opportunities for this involvement, and parents get to assess how their children are doing.
They can then take notes about areas they think they should improve and present these findings to their teachers. Perhaps the child is struggling with specific topics and concepts that are holding them back from achieving what they need to.
It Provides Opportunities for Parents to Learn
Keeping our brains active is important as we get older. As a parent, helping your kids with their homework is a great way of staying active while learning alongside them. While the material might seem familiar to you, there will be one or two challenges that force you to think differently before helping your child. This is a great exercise and can have long-term positive effects on your mental health.
If you are considering helping your children with homework, you should start as soon as possible. Start by assessing their academic success and needs so you know how to help best. Be involved and keep things fun and light-hearted. School is already difficult enough for many children; they do not need to face the same difficulties at home.