Building Learning Skills Article Archive

Hands-on activities you can do with your child to help them become better learners.

• Handwritten Thank-You Notes Offer Many Ways To LearnParents can add humor—and math and history learning—to this task, which is one that most children initially resist.
• Instill a Love of Learning in Your ChildTo encourage curiosity and a passion for learning in your child, discuss things you’re interested in, show her real-world examples, and don’t forget to take her lead.
• Teachers Want Student ParticipationThe older kids get, the more their teachers want to hear from them.
• Knowing the Scientific Method Helps With ProjectsThe scientific method will probably be used by your child throughout her school career.
• Simple Ideas To Help Overcome Math AnxietySome middle school children get so anxious about math, they dread going to class. Or they worry so excessively about a test, they make mistakes.
• Help Make Practice More Perfect: Four Simple StepsNew research shows that practicing can help us perform much, much better—because it actually improves the way we think.
• Good Questions To Help With Science ProjectsScience projects can turn into a parent’s biggest nightmare.
• Make Sure Your Middle Schooler Is Academically FitSchools across the nation are raising their academic standards.
• Tips To Take Good Notes and Use Them WellIf your child’s grades have slipped and she does not seem to understand what happened in class, she may need to take better notes.
• Three Steps To Help Build Teens' Memory SkillsWhether it’s memorizing vocabulary words in a foreign language or recalling important dates in history class, your teen needs to develop the ability to memorize and recall facts.
• Students Who Don’t Give Up Achieve Academic SuccessFew qualities will serve your child better than sticking to a job until she has done her best.
• Self-Esteem Is Key to Success; Help Your Teen Develop ItChildren with high self-esteem do better in school.
• Simple Activities To Build Interest in ScienceIf your middle schooler tells you science is boring, conduct an experiment of your own.
• Successful Students Know That Good Listening Aids LearningMost kids are visual learners. They learn by watching, reading and writing.
• Mind Mapping Can Help Your Child Organize, Comprehend InformationMind mapping is a visual memory technique.
• Ask Your Child To Be Your "Reference Librarian"Here’s a great way to teach your kids how to look for information.
• Maintain a Love of Learning During SummerEven if your child complains about school, chances are she loves learning.
• Asking What and Why Focuses Middle Schoolers' LearningChildren need to understand what they’re doing in school and why.
• "Mind Pictures" Help Visual Learners Retain InformationMany children are visual learners.
• "Concentration" Can Help Middle Schoolers LearnDo your children have trouble with geography, history, or other subjects where they must memorize facts?
• Use Incentives at Homework Time, not NaggingIf your child has just started middle school, he probably has more homework than he did in elementary school. If he is continuing through middle school, his work has probably gotten tougher.
• Better Concentration Helps Middle Schoolers Learn MoreBetter concentration will make your child a more efficient learner.
• Teach Your Child To Challenge, Evaluate StatisticsThey’re in the newspaper. They’re on the news. They’re in textbooks. They’re even in our daily conversation.
• Making Lists Can Help Keep Your Child’s Memory SharpOnce, you had a child with a razor-sharp memory.
• Encourage Teens To Think Like ScientistsScientists share a few common qualities that help them understand and use what they discover.
• Banish Your Child’s BoredomChildren often complain of being bored.
• Your teen doesn’t have to be a genius to achieve in schoolLet’s face it—most of us can’t be called a genius.
• The "Good Old Summertime" Still a Time for LearningEncourage your teen to fit some fun learning opportunities into his summer plans.
• Reference Notebook Keeps Important Facts at HandHow many r’s in “occurrence”? What is the formula for finding the volume of a sphere? Teens have lots of facts to remember, and there are a few that are always a problem.
• Routines, Good Study Habits Help Teens ConcentrateHe’s trying to study biology, but his mind just keeps wandering. He’s trying to write an English essay, but he only has three doodles on his paper. Sound familiar?
• Children Whose Parents Read To Them Get Better GradesYou read bedtime stories to your kids when they were younger. But now that they can read for themselves, you may be wondering if it’s still worth the effort for you to keep reading aloud to your child.
• Following a Process Helps Young Scientists Find AnswersThe toughest part of science isn’t working in a lab.
• Easy Ideas To Help Your Child Enjoy ScienceAs parents, we must prepare our children for a world that will be vastly different from the one in which we grew up. In the years ahead, everyone will need to know more about science and technology.
• Encourage Your Child To Stick With Challenging TasksDoes your child struggle with math and science? One reason may be something called “learned helplessness.”
• Show Your Child Ways To Become a Scientific ThinkerYou don’t have to be a rocket scientist to teach your child science.
• Wrong Answers Can Help Your Child Learn!Accuracy is always important. But sometimes, the wrong answer can help parents and children pinpoint the things kids may not understand.
• Teachers Wish Parents Would Do These ThingsParents and teachers can work more closely if they know what is expected of them.
• Help Your Child Deal With Report Cards; Good or BadNo matter how your child’s grades are, you can use the way you talk about her report card to help her do better in school.
• Ways To Support Learning at HomeThe new school year is under way. So it’s a good time to make sure you’re doing things at home to support your child’s learning.
• Make Learning as Easy as Tic-Tac-ToeThe next time your child faces a test or needs to practice math or other skills, make a game of it.
• Make Family Travel Educational by Researching DestinationsBefore taking a family vacation, learn about the places you’re going to visit.
• Keep Children’s Minds Active During SummerStudies show children lose one to three months of learning over summer vacation.
• Keep Children Learning During VacationsDuring school holidays, parents have a great opportunity to promote learning—even during this hectic time of year.
• Have a Library Scavenger Hunt With Your ChildLibraries contain the answers to many of the questions your child will have. Here’s a fun game that will help your child understand where to go in the library to find certain kinds of information.
• Expand Your Child’s World Through Multimedia AdventuresYou probably can’t take your child on a trip to Southeast Asia this year. But if she’s the sort who loves adventure, you could “visit” it online.
• Develop Observation Skills With a Micro-HikeSometimes, children seem to pass through the world without really seeing it at all.
• Promote Informal Learning During Summer VacationStudies show that many students suffer from what is called summer learning loss.
• Museums Make Learning FunNext weekend—or any time your child has some free time—why not visit a museum?
• Make Museum Visits a Family Learning AdventureJust looking at objects in museums can be boring to kids. If you play some museum games, your trip will be more fun. And your child will be inspired to observe, think, and explore.
• "Rule of Seven" Makes Learning Lists ManageableYour 3rd grader is learning his spelling words. Your 5th grader has to know all the states and their capitals.
• Education "Basics" Are Learned at HomeWe hear a lot of talk about teaching children basic skills.
• Techniques To Help Kids Deal With Frustration“It’s not that I’m so smart,” Albert Einstein said. “It’s just that I stay with problems longer.” That’s good advice for your child, too.
• Good Students Can Follow Directions CarefullyYour child got a lower grade on the test because he didn’t write in complete sentences. His paper was marked down because he wrote in pencil, not in pen.
• Study in the Same Place Every DayWhen psychologist Ivan Pavlov was studying dogs, he discovered that the dogs salivated every time a lab technician entered the room.
• Tips To Help Children Focus on HomeworkTo do well in school, children must be able to pay attention. They must focus on a task and not get distracted.
• 4 Strategies for End-of-Year TestsThe end of the school year probably means numerous exams for your child. Although you can’t study for your children, there are things you can do to make test-taking a little less stressful.
• Questions To Get Your Child Thinking and Reading CriticallyChildren may forget what they read. Or they freeze up with writer’s block when it’s time to write a book report.
• 10 Success Secrets for Parent TutoringTutoring your own child can be a difficult undertaking. Children can be overly sensitive and stubborn. Parents can get impatient.
• Memory Aids To Help in Science StudyScience homework involves memorizing some facts. These two memory aids will make the job easier.
• Teach Your Child How To Think Through Homework SnagsWhat can parents do when their child is stuck on a homework problem?
• Four Strategies To Boost Study SuccessA child's success in school does not just depend on intelligence.
• Visit Offbeat Educational Places During School BreaksThe winter school holiday can be a great time to make some educational trips.
• Use Junk Mail To Help Your Child LearnTo most people, junk mail is just that—it’s junk or trash to toss. But you can turn it into a valuable learning tool!
• Try Mnemonics To Help Your Child MemorizeFor some children, memorizing lists is easy. But many others need a little help. The use of mnemonics can help.
• Tips To Improve Children’s Memory SkillsMemorizing information is a skill children learn by doing. It takes energy and creativity.
• Significant March Events and Related ActivitiesEveryone knows that St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in March. Here are some lesser-known March days that can spark conversation and learning with your child.
• Research Shows Parents Can Help Children AchieveNot all kids can grow up to be Tiger Woods. Or can they?
• "Local Learning Adventures" Can Cure Summer BoredomIt’s smart and easy to keep kids learning all summer long.
• Asking, ‘How Do You Learn?’ Gets Children to ThinkKids learn more and stay more motivated in their schoolwork when they reflect on their own learning—when they continually make a self- assessment.
• Explore Worlds of Fun and Adventure at the LibraryThe local library is a great place to explore.
• Playing With Clay Teaches Children To Follow StepsYour child probably loves making things with clay.
• Build memory skills with storytelling & drawingResearchers have found that children’s ability to remember is tied to their language skills.
• Begin Questions With How & Why To Promote ThinkingFour-year-olds hear a lot of questions that begin with who, what, when and where.
• Build your child’s concentration with some hands-on activitiesStaying involved with one activity encourages preschoolers to concentrate.
• Watch for Changes in a Special Plant or TreeMarch brings hints of the spring that will be coming soon, including changes in trees and plants.
• Parents Are Teachers, TooUse these simple ideas to reinforce learning at home and develop your child’s academic skills.
• Summer Amnesia: Avoid the Brain DrainKids lose academic ground in the summer. Use these tips to keep them from falling behind.