by Amelia Randall

Created on: June 23, 2010   Last Updated: June 24, 2010

Engaging parents in their children's education is the key to a child's learning and therefore the key to turning around low performance schools.

It is easy for a person to think that when they send their child to school they expect them to learn all they need from the teachers. They are not worried about spending time with their child in an educational way, they feel they get enough at school.

The truth is though, if a parent does not spend time answering questions and bringing out an interest in learning from the child, then the child is likely to just not bother. The child will look at what they do from home and feel if their parents are not overly bothered then why should they try, thus resulting in poor results and grades.

A child learns from its family all the time. We teach our children to eat, walk, crawl, speak and use a toilet. We teach them how to be polite, understanding and how to listen to other people as well as form an opinion and have their say. We show them the basics of a day, like eating breakfast and brushing teeth in the morning, fruit time, lunch, snack, dinner, bath and bed. All these things seem normal to us, but to a child this is unknown and it is the parents who teach them.

If a parent was to sit down and spend time reading to their child, then this helps a great deal. Simple things like discussing how a certain tool works while you are doing d.i.y, etc., brings out a child's interest in learning and especially if you praise them for remembering something. Basic speech correction and spending the time to listen to your child also helps. You need to understand your child and their individual needs. When you do this, you will know where you need to help them and the best ways to get through to them. Then once you have got through to them, they will listen and be eager in the classroom. 

Another way you can help is by listening to what your child does at school. Take an interest even if you are not, because if they feel you do not care and are not interested, then they will have the same attitude in the classroom.

Think of it this way, when you go for an interview, if the business seems dull and like nobody cares, you form the same attitude. If you are working somewhere that is full of life and proud of what it stands for, then you also become proud of working there and you strive to learn as much as you can about that company in order to succeed.

Learn more about this author, Amelia Randall.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.