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NEW SCHOOL YEAR RESOLUTIONS?
By Dr. Marilyn Heins
August 10, 2009
Everybody makes New Year's resolutions. Stop smoking, lose 10 pounds, label the family pictures.
How about making NEW SCHOOL YEAR RESOLUTIONS?
Both children and parents should resolve to make the new school year productive and meaningful.
Schools can't do it all. Parents are major partners in the education of their children. You have three major tasks:
Impart your HIGH EXPECTATIONS. Don't let a day go by without talking to your child about school. Be sure he or she understands that you expect a good performance at school and serious attention to homework. Lose the "Do the best you can" mantra. Change it to "Get good grades, your future depends on it."
Communicate frequently with your child's teacher. Don't wait for report cards, know how your child is doing every week. Do everything you can to help a struggling child. Sometimes a few weeks of tutoring does the trick.
Do everything in your power to help your child's school district especially today when the economy has slashed budgets in many communities. Parents in many areas are rasing money to restore programs and teachers to their schools.
Resolve to do all three tasks well in the upcoming school year.
Before school starts ask your child about the upcoming year. "What New School Year resolutions will you make?" Explain your three resolutions and how you will carry them out. Let your child think about suitable resolutions. If the kid can't think of any, I can. "I will do better in school this year than last year." "I will get all A's this year." "I will read at least one book a week that is not assigned."
You and your children are doing more than you think. You are helping to provide the future human capital we need for our country to survive in this competitive world. Human capital must be well educated.. It starts with you.
New York Times columnist David Brooks recently quoted Barack Obama's story of how his mother woke him at 4:30 am every morning to tutor him before he went to school. When he complained she told him, "This is no picnic for me either, Buster!" Brooks sagely noted this anecdote points to the two traits needed for academic success: RELATIONSHIPS and RIGOR. Be sure your children know you care about how well they do at school and how hard they work because you are the relationship that counts.
Written by Dr Marilyn Heins. Dr.Heins is a pediatrician and parenting columnist residing in Tucson Arizona. For more information visit www.ParentKidsRight.com.
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