Study Skills

9 Tips for Motivating Unmotivated Kids

October 22, 2016 by pathway2success 1 Comment

Many kids and young adults struggle with motivation. These are the kids who are slow to start classwork, often don’t turn in homework, and may even refuse to attempt any assignment they view as a challenge. It can be extremely frustrating, especially because these students are often bright and capable in their own way. Here are some strategies you can use within your classrooms to help support their needs while still holding them accountable.

1. Keep your expectations high. Even when kids are struggling with finding motivation, you want to give the message that you expect greatness from them.

2. Give choices. Allowing a choice in an assignment or task gives kids power and helps them feel more in control of what they are accomplishing. Choice can mean choosing between two different worksheets, choosing their own lab group, or choosing whether to write or type an assignment. Consider finding a choice that fits a student’s individual strengths or interests. If a student isn’t motivated to write a research paper on a famous poet, allow them to present about their favorite musical artist. Instead of completing a lab report on cells, have your artistic student draw and label a diagram of a cell. It’s okay to think outside the box with this.

3. Allow accommodations when necessary. Simple accommodations, like a word bank, a calculator, or a word processor can help kids get in a better mindset for finishing a challenging task.

4. Talk to the student. Find out what is behind the lack of motivation to complete work in your class. Perhaps the student struggles with your content area, doesn’t understand the way you give directions, or is having some major issues at home. Talk privately and compassionately with the student and you can find out a lot.

5. Work out a plan. For students really struggling with getting tasks done in your class, try working out some incentives. Find out what the student would like to work towards – extra points on a quiz, a homework pass, or sitting in a special spot in your classroom. Then, make a plan so that your student can work towards earning that incentive. Maybe when he or she finishes homework for an entire week, they earn something special. Not only does this give the student something to work for, but it also helps build your relationship, too.

6. Work through motivation challenges together. Use this Motivation Workbook to teach about motivation, identify motivational challenges, and make a plan for success. Consider trying the Free Motivation Workbook Sampler which includes identifying what motivation is, understanding lack of motivation, strategies for improving motivation, and a motivation journal.

7. Talk to other adults who work with that student. Look for trends. Find out where the students does well and find out how you can replicate that in your class. For example, I worked with a student who did considerably better in his history class than his science class. With some investigating, I was able to notice that the science class lacked the same structure that his history class had. It was a simple thing to replicate once the teachers were made aware. Another important consideration is the time of day that the student is struggling. Is it in the morning when he or she didn’t get enough sleep? Or maybe around lunch time is challenging after being in a less structured social setting? These are just some examples of what you can consider.

8. Talk to parents. When you find yourself not making enough progress with your student, talk to his or her parents. Share what you have tried and see if there is anything at home the child can work for and if parents could talk to the child, too.

9. Keep your cool. It’s easy to get frustrated at kids who lack motivation but remember that they are just kids. There is often a reason why students won’t initiate tasks, even if we don’t know that reason at the moment. Take your time working with the student and show you are proud when you see progress – even just a little means baby steps in the right direction.

Executive Functioning Strategies for the Classroom

October 8, 2016 by pathway2success 4 Comments

Many kids and young adults would benefit academically and socially by improving their executive functioning skills. These skills include: planning, organization, time management, task initation, working memory, metacognition, self-control, sustained attention, flexibility, and perseverance. If you need more background on each of these specific skills, read my post on Executive Functioning Skills Explained.

Teach all executive functioning skills with a no-prep workbook.

Strategies to help support and strengthen executive functioning skills don’t need to be complicated. There are many strategies and activities teachers, paraprofessionals, and counselors can do in the classroom right away. If you want a guide to help you teach all executive functioning skills without any prep, consider my Executive Functioning Advanced Workbook, which includes over 100 pages packed with executive functioning lessons and practice.

Here are some simple ideas for practicing and strengthening executive functioning skills in the classroom that you can start right away:

Planning – People with weaker planning skills may jump into assignments or projects without thinking things through, or may forget to begin tasks when needed. Strategies for those who struggle with planning include making lists, writing short-term goals, and using a calendar or planner. Homework logs can be a huge help. Teachers can also support kids by setting up specific routines such as a daily homework bin, daily homework board, and schedule for the day.

Organization – Those who lack this skills might have disorganized binders/lockers, misplace important assignments, and forget to do assignments entirely. Many kids who struggle with organization need to be taught and shown how to systematically organize their binders and materials. Then, planning for weekly binder checks can help kids stay organized, too. Teachers can help by giving extra time in the beginning and end of class to write down homework, take papers out, and put papers away in the right spot. Organizational checklists can help, too.

Time Management – Kids and adults with weak time management skills might over- or under- estimate the time it takes to complete something, have trouble prioritizing tasks, and ultimately not meet critical deadlines. Strategies for time management include teaching kids to estimate time needed for tasks, setting specific time-based goals, and learning to prioritize the importance of tasks/assignments. One huge help from teachers can be to incorporate mini-deadlines into long-term assignments.

Task Initiation – Those who struggle with task initiation often feel they “can’t” start an assignment, even when they want to. In turn, this leaves many tasks incomplete or never even started. To support kids with this weakness, help them to make a specific list or plan for each assignment. For longer assignments, chunking into smaller ones can make a huge difference.

Working Memory – Kids and adults with weaker working memory often struggle to remember directions when said aloud, complete mental math, and even copy information from one place to another. Tips for working memory are mainly to develop compensatory strategies, such as repeating information back and learning to paraphrase information while reading or listening to a lecture. Teachers can give these kids a copy of clean notes to follow along in class, which will reduce the need to go back and forth while taking notes.

Metacognition – Those who struggle with this skill often have no clue on how they did on a recent test or quiz, or have no idea what material to study right before. One excellent strategy is to learn to self-monitor your own learning. Teaching kids to stop and answer, “What did I just learn?” can allow them to develop an understanding of what they know and what they still need help on. Sticky notes are great for this! After an assessment or unit, it might also be helpful for the teacher to conference with the student to determine what he or she learned, what worked well, and what they need to work on more.

Self-Control – Kids with weak self-control skills might call out in class frequently, make impulsive decisions without thinking, or have anger management problems. These kids need extra support in learning to manage their emotions. You can practice self-control with games. My favorite is to use Blurt. Kids have to practice self-control by not shouting out when it isn’t their turn. This becomes really challenging if a student knows the answer but it’s not their turn. In the classroom, teachers can help by having lots of structure and routines. You can also teach kids and young adults to use I-statements as a positive way to express emotions.

Sustained Attention – When attention skills are weaker, kids and young adults might struggle to pay attention to a class lesson, miss out on directions, or appear to daze off during a working session. One of the shortest but most effective ways to help increase attention is to help kids become aware of their personal distractors and work with them to reduce those distractions. To teach and practice paying attention, you can also play a fun game of Simon Says! It’s a great way to have a brain break serve as practice for focus and attention.

Flexibility – People who lack flexibility skills struggle significantly with change. Changes in the schedule or plans can cause emotional outbursts or an inability to cope. This might include when there is a substitute or if an assembly changes the daily schedule. To help support these kids, it’s helpful to prepare them for changes to the schedule ahead of time. Teaching perspective-taking skills also goes a long way with learning flexibility skills, as kids can learn to understand different points of view and make sense of them. Most of all, encourage these types of kids to try new things and go outside of their comfort zone.

Perseverance – Those who struggle with perseverance often give up on tasks and assignments before they are done. They are the kids who ask for help before trying sufficient strategies on their own, making them usually over-reliant on support or not finishing tasks at all. To strengthen this skill, teachers can teach specific strategies for what to do when a student is stuck. Also, riddles of the day and brainteasers can be a fun challenge to incorporate into your class.

As a next step, you might want to read up on some top games to improve these executive functioning skills. The key is to continue practicing and reinforcing these skills over and over!

Executive Functioning Free Workbook Sampler

If you need a place to start right away, download my free Executive Functioning Workbook Sampler. If you like that, consider the full product, my Executive Functioning Advanced Workbook. With over 100 pages, it includes comprehensive information and practice for every executive functioning skill with no prep for the teacher.

10 Ways to Promote a Growth Mindset

September 10, 2016 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Having a growth mindset means understanding that you can develop your own strengths and weaknesses through hard work, dedication, and grit. By teaching students to have a growth mindset, kids and young adults can better learn to work through challenges and overcome adversity in their lives.

The opposite of a growth mindset is a fixed mindset. With a fixed mindset, people believe that you are who you are, and that doesn’t change. It’s the difference between the student who says, “I’m just bad at math” (fixed mindset) and the student who says, “This is going to be challenging, but I’ll work through it and learn it as I go” (growth mindset). By promoting and encouraging a growth mindset, adults can help kids and young adults to step outside their comfort zones, push themselves to their limits, learn from difficulties, and ultimately find success.

Having a fixed mindset often leads to giving up on tasks, feeling poorly about oneself, and avoiding challenges. On the other hand, having a growth mindset encourages students to try new things, embrace challenges, and develop strong confidence.

Here are some ways you can promote a growth mindset with kids and young adults:

1. Teach the difference between a fixed and growth mindset. Give explicit instruction to kids about growth and fixed mindsets, explaining the positives associated with adopting a growth mindset. Focus on teaching how having a growth mindset can really help kids feel better, do better, and succeed.

2. Highlight examples of growth mindset in your classroom. Specifically praise kids when they do something with a growth mindset. You might say, “Last week I heard you say you were not a good artist, but you really worked hard on your collage and it came out very artistically”, or “I saw you sitting with your head down during morning work time for the first minute. I love that you pushed forward and finished your work even though it was challenging for you to get started.” Positive feedback goes a long way when it is specific.

Use these task cards to help kids and young adults learn about growth mindset.

3. Give time for kids to talk about having a growth mindset. Use practice examples, whether they are made up or real life examples from each student’s life. Use Growth Mindset Task Cards to practice a growth mindset in all areas of life: at home, school, during activities, with friends, and within our own belief systems.

4. Encourage risks and highlight that mistakes are learning experiences instead of failures. When a child or young adult does make a mistake, avoid making him or her feel bad about the mistake. Instead, encourage personal growth by asking them to identify what they’ve learned from the challenge.

5. Help kids set short term goals. Find out what goals kids want to accomplish in the next few months or within the year. Focus on one main area, whether it is academic, social, or personal. Help kids set a realistic SMART goal and help them come up with specific strategies for how they can accomplish that goal.

6. Conference with students about their goals and progress. Take time every two weeks to “check in” with kids and their goals. Make it a time to assess how much progress has been made and what the student has learned. You can look at what didn’t work but really focus on what DID work. Use that positive momentum to keep the progress going. Also, recognize that it’s okay if students tweak their goals as they go. Setting regular times to check in with goals really helps kids stay on track and learn that achieving that goal is possible.

7. Discuss people and celebrities who achieved success with a growth mindset. There truly are so many examples in all different areas of life. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team but his mother talked him into not giving up, so he continued to practice and get better. The Beatles were turned down by several record companies because some just didn’t like their sound. Oprah had a boss who told her she wasn’t fit for television. The list goes on and on! You could even use this as a research project in your classroom so that each student can report back about someone who overcame adversity and used a growth mindset to succeed.

8. Give challenging tasks. Brainteasers, riddles, and math problems are an excellent way to push kids to try challenging problems without giving up. When kids want to know the answer, don’t give it right away! Allow for plenty of time to go back and think about the problem. This encourages the idea that sometimes you don’t get all the answers, and you must work through challenges on your own to find out.

9. Use literature that shows examples of perseverance. You can use them within your language arts instruction or just as a read aloud for fun. From short children’s books to longer chapter books, you can find many different texts that promote a growth mindset. Some shorter books include: Ish by Peter H. Reynolds, The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires, and Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett. One longer selection is Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan. Biographies also work great to teach growth mindset, as they highlight people who have persevered through serious challenges.

10. Use the word “yet”. When someone says, “I don’t know how to do this”, just add the word “yet”. Constantly reminding this encourages the idea that most things are possible with hard work, persistence, and time.

Helping kids and young adults to develop a growth mindset takes time, but it’s worth it in the end. You can see kid’s perceptions about themselves slowly begin to change from, “I can’t do this” to “How CAN I do this?” and then eventually, “I know I can do this”.

Executive Functioning Skills Explained

August 1, 2016 by pathway2success 2 Comments

Executive functioning skills are getting a lot of attention right now in education. Honestly, it’s not even the amount of attention that they deserve, though. Executive functions are essentially the building blocks for completing all tasks in life (in school and beyond).

If you think of executive functioning, you might just think of a student who has organizational issues: his binder is a mess, he can’t find papers he needs, and forgets homework at home. It’s true that organization is one executive functioning skill, but there are actually many more. Neuropsychologists and educational researchers continue to try and identify the specific executive functioning skills in separate categories so that they can be better understood. In turn, this allows us to teach these skills to young adults while setting up strategies for success in our classrooms. The main executive functioning skills include: planning, organization, time management, task initiation, working memory, metacognition, self-control, sustained attention, flexibility, and perseverance.

What’s even more interesting is how all the skills actually work together to complete tasks. You almost never use an executive functioning skill in isolation. Instead, the skills are woven together to allow tasks to be completed in a complete and coherent way. For example, when you go grocery shopping, you have to plan out which stores you’ll go to and organize with coupons or a sales flyer. Then, you will finally set out for the store (task initiation). You have to think about what items you already have and what you will need (metacognition). You have to use time management to get there at a time that works for you and gives you enough time to shop. While shopping, you will probably use your working memory to figure out prices and best deals, while also using self-control to avoid indulging in foods on the no-list. You may even have to adapt your list when the store doesn’t have a certain item you expected (flexibility). You will most likely keep focused while shopping, so you can get home on time (attention). Finally, even if you are tired of shopping and the lines are horrendously long, you will stick to the task to finish and get the groceries home (perseverance). That is just one small task of how executive functioning skills are used in an everyday life experience.

Now, imagine what it is like for kids and young adults juggling all of these mental skills while: learning new math skills, writing a research paper, getting to classes on time, completing homework assignments, working in small groups, completing science labs, participating in gym class sports, and so much more.

Here is a short summary of each of the executive functioning skills:

Planning is the ability to put together a strategy for attaining a goal. It includes analyzing what you need and what steps you should take to complete task.

Organization is the ability to develop and maintain a system to keep materials and plans orderly. That includes a system for homework, keeping track of assignments/papers, and being organized at home, too.

Time Management means having an accurate understanding of how long it will take to complete tasks and being able to use time effectively to actually finish those tasks on schedule.

Task Initiation is the ability to independently start tasks when needed. It means being able to start something even when you really don’t want to.

Working Memory is the mental process that allows us to hold information in our minds while we are working with it. Examples include computing math problems mentally and remembering information for short periods of time during research or note-taking.

Metacognition means knowing what you know and what you don’t know. It’s a critical skill for assessing your progress on tasks and changing your methods as you go. Metacognition is also the skill that allows you to stop yourself when you are stuck before going ahead too far.

Self-control is the ability regulate yourself, including your thoughts, actions, and emotions. This means being able to manage your anger and wait your turn to share. Not only is this skill critical for academic success, but social success, too.

Sustained Attention is being able to focus on a person or task for a period of time. It includes being able to avoid distractions and shifting your focus when needed.

Flexibility means being able to adapt to new situations and dealing with change. Changes that cause difficulty might include a schedule change or when a plan doesn’t come together for a project.

Perseverance is sticking to a task and not giving up, even when it becomes challenging. Further, it’s being able to use strategies to get through a task, regardless of the roadblocks that pop up along the way.

Any educator can help to teach and support these critical skills, whether a special education teacher, classroom teacher, school counselor, psychologist, or paraprofessional. Parents can benefit from learning about these skills too, especially when it comes to helping manage homework and projects at home. If you’re getting started and are looking for some basic materials, consider my Executive Functioning Lessons and Activities. The ultimate goal is to teach and foster stronger executive functioning skills, so that kids and young adults can do more independently.

If you are looking for the next step up, consider the Executive Functioning Advanced Workbook. It has over 100 student workbook pages that teach and provide practice around the same skills. Best of all, there is no prep for the teacher.

If you’re interested, here are some other executive functioning topics I’ve written about:

If you want a reminder about these skills, be sure to grab this FREE Executive Functioning Poster!

Organizing Task Cards

May 10, 2016 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Task cards are fun, versatile, and really easy for teachers to use in their classrooms. With more than just a couple sets, organization of those task cards can be a pain, though. Here are some fool-proof strategies for keeping your task cards neatly stashed away until they are ready to be used.

Plastic Baggies. Place a stack of task cards into a ziplock plastic bag. Label the outside with a sharpie and you are set to go! You can also hole punch a corner of the bag and add them to a binder to add to similar themed task cards (like with the pencil pouch method). Alternatively, you can place several task card plastic bag sets into one bigger plastic bag to be held all together. Having a variety of plastic bag sizes is helpful for this reason.

Envelopes. Just place the task cards inside the envelope and label it. You can use different sized envelopes depending on the size of your task cards. This is a great way to set out the cards for individual groups. This is pretty quick, cheap, and simple since everyone should have envelopes on hand. Use a clip to hold the envelope shut so you don’t end up with task cards all over the place!

Pencil Pouch to Hold Task Cards

Pencil Pouches. Put a stack of task cards right into a pencil pouch. Then, zip it up and label the outside of the pencil pouch. Best of all, you can put multiple sets of task cards away like this within 1 binder. This is a great way to organize task cards for whole units or months. This is by far my favorite approach, especially if you invest in high-quality pencil pouches that will last over time.

File Folders. Set up a container with file folders. One container can be math and another container is reading. Then, label each file with specific topics you need to teach. Add your task card sets to each category, as needed. Another option is that you can also set the file folders up by the week (week 1, week 2, so on) or the month. Arrange which task cards you’d like to introduce for each week or month of school. This can be helpful if you love incorporating holiday themed materials in your classroom.
File Folders for Organizing Task Cards

Stack-able bins. Choose your size and style of bins that stack together. Label the outside of each bin with the type of task card. This is a great strategy if you plan to store task cards in a cabinet or shelf in your classroom.

For my last blog post on fun and simple ways to use task cards right in your classroom, click here.

How do you organize and manage task cards in your classroom?

How to Use Task Cards

April 5, 2016 by pathway2success 5 Comments

Task cards are an easy, simple, and practical instructional strategy to incorporate into your classroom. There is some prep work and set up required by teachers, but once you have a system in place, it is easy from there on out. Best of all, kids love using task cards. Task cards really do promote student engagement, which helps your class run smoothly while the magic of learning is happening.

First, find task cards on any subject you need to teach. Task cards are a great option for practice with math concepts, reading comprehension skills, science, social studies, and more. You can even find task cards that focus solely on social skills for students with special needs. The options for task cards are really endless. If you can’t find the specific task cards needed for your subject material, you can easily make your own using medium or large sized index cards. To make them look even fancier, you can use colored index cards to help separate different subjects, topics, or skills. Laminate them or copy on stock paper to allow for more durability and use.

Then, plan HOW you will use the task cards within your classroom. There are several different strategies that you could implement or test out. With any strategy, you can choose to have kids write down their responses on paper or share responses orally. Check out these free Task Card Response Sheets that you can use with your students.

Free Task Card Response Sheets

1. Simple Partner Task Cards. Set students up in pairs with a stack of task cards. Students take turns picking a task cards and solving it at the same time. Students can then check if they got the same answer and re-teach each other when someone needs help.

2. Task Card Centers. Set up groups of task cards throughout the classroom. Have students spend a period of time (10 minutes) at each center with their group. Set a timer. When the timer goes off, students move to the next center of task cards.

3. Game Time Task Cards. Let students work in pairs or small groups to play simple games, such as Scrabble, Connect Four, Checkers, Chess, or really any board games you have on hand. Students need to solve a task card and record their answer before taking a turn.

4. Movement Task Cards. Select 5-10 task cards and tape them or hang them up around the room. Have students walk around and complete as many task cards as they can.

5. “Do Now” Morning Work. Leave a pile of task cards at each table first thing in the morning. Have students quietly and independently complete task cards while at their seats.

6. Create Your Own Task Cards. Have students create their own task cards on a specific topic using index cards. Then, have students share their cards with a partner for their partner to solve.

7. Around the World Task Cards. All students should start by sitting at their desks. Choose one student randomly to stand up next to someone else. The teacher (or a student leader) flips a task card and reads it to the two standing students. Whoever answers the task card first gets to move on to the next student and the student who didn’t answer correctly must sit down. The goal is for one student to get enough answers right to go “all around the world” (a.k.a. the classroom).

8. Early Finisher Task Cards. Have sets up task cards in plastic baggies, envelopes, or cups ready for students who finish tests or other assignments early. Students can choose their “extra credit task cards” on their own or be provided a specific set by the teacher.

9. Teach the Class Task Cards. Pass out different task cards to each student. You can differentiate by giving specific task cards to certain students. Give time for kids to complete their task card, then select students to teach their task card to the class.

10. Homework Task Cards. Provide students an extra copy of task cards and send them home for kids to practice on their own, with friends, or with parents.

Top 10 Middle School Keys to Success

February 7, 2016 by pathway2success 8 Comments

I absolutely love teaching middle school. Sometimes, though, when people hear that I teach middle school, they seem to feel bad for me. Like middle school is some type of unknown vortex for kids. Maybe that’s why I love it so much. It’s a time of creativity, instability, and the unknown. It’s a time when kids are going from being children to young adults. So much happens from 6th to 8th grade, and as a special education teacher, I have the unique experience of working with kids all the way through their middle school years. It’s truly a blast (granted, there are really hard days, but overall, it’s a blast!).

I’m noticing more and more that kids are having significant difficulty transitioning over from elementary school to middle school. Trust me, it’s always been a challenge for both the kids and the parents. Lately, though, it’s been downright crazy. I’m not sure if it’s due to increased standards, busy and challenging home lives, or something unseen. Regardless, I see a big need to increase our kids more for middle school years.

These middle school transition activities will help young adults start the middle school years off right. Middle school hacks for success focus on staying organized, getting involved in activities, and more. #middleschool #teens #pathway2success

Middle School Transition Kit

With that, I recently put together a Middle School Transition Kit. It outlines everything a first year middle schooler needs to know about, including staying engaged in classes, dealing with different teachers, effective study habits, study halls, the importance of grades, lunch time, knowing the rules, changing for gym, and so much more. It’s amazing to see it all with a different lens, since there are such huge changes from elementary to middle.

I also put together the top 10 keys to middle school success:

#1 Sleep well. Teens and young adults should be getting 8 to 10 hours per night. Enough sleep is critical for your body and brain to function well.

#2 Eat right. Healthy and balanced meals give your body and mind energy to work well throughout the day. Take extra time and effort to make sure you’re not only eating enough, but eating a mix of everything you need (fruits, veggies, dairy, and whole grains).

#3 Do your homework. Making it a habit to do your homework each night will help you practice skills and be ready for the quizzes and tests. It also helps to show your teacher that you care, which may come in handy when you need his or her help.

#4 Pay attention in class. Focusing and using class time wisely is one of the best ways to get ahead in middle school. Since you’ll be switching around from class to class, it’s important to pay attention and follow along for every minute that you can.

#5 Get involved. Research shows that school involvement can be a big determining factor for your success. Kids who are involved with after school activities, sports, and clubs are more likely to do well inside and outside of school.

#6 Think positive. Things are going to get tough and overwhelming at times. It’s important to stay positive and know that you CAN do whatever you put your mind to.

#7 Ask for help. Whether it is academic, social, or emotional help, there are adults at the school ready and willing to help you. Seek out and ask for help when you feel you might need it.

#8 Stay organized. A little organization goes a LONG way in middle school. Writing down homework in a consistent place and keeping pages organized in the right spots will help you study, turn in work, and do better on tests/quizzes.

#9 Make goals. Give yourself something that you want to attain by the end of the marking term. Then, make a plan and stick with it to get there.

#10 Take risks. Middle school is the time when you start to grow up and figure out who you are in the world. Take risks and be brave. It will pay off in the end!

If you’re interested in teaching these keys to success to your middle schoolers (or future middle schoolers), get your own student-friendly free Middle School Keys to Success worksheet here:

Do you have any more keys to success that you think are necessary for your middle schoolers? Please share!

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Why It’s Okay to Reduce Homework

September 11, 2015 by pathway2success 3 Comments

Why It's Okay to Reduce Homework As teachers, we all want our students to learn, practice skills, and thrive. Time is certainly limited in our classes. Even critical academic time gets interrupted with so much from assemblies, to guest speakers, and even standardized assessments themselves. So, homework often seems to be a great way to get kids to practice those skills we have taught. It’s a deceiving idea, though. There is substantial research that extra homework is NOT the answer to getting children and young adults to learning more. In fact, sometimes overdoing the homework can have a pretty negative result, overflowing to the home and school the next day. Here are some thought provoking reasons why it is okay to reduce the homework.

Not All Kids are Created Equal – For some students, doing homework might be fairly quick. I know several students who enjoy homework, even. It comes easy to them and they can finish with their assignments within an hour of getting home. For other students, though, that same homework is a significant and painful challenge. Students with reading disabilities and weaknesses may struggle with just reading the directions. Children without access to computers or technology may lack the ability to find information online or access websites. Kids with limited attention may sit for 30 minutes and only get one problem done. Since not all kids are created equal, it seems insane to assign homework that is a one-size-fits-all. Simply put, kids who struggle are going to need less.

Home Time is Important – Working families are so busy. Parents come home, do chores, and start dinner. Time is really so limited to spend with kids. Consider that single hour left before bed time. Do you really want the only family time being used struggled with homework? While this could serve as family time, in many families it is probably more important for children to sit with their parents and talk, watch the news, or play a board game together.

Kids are Busy, Too – Children and young adults are so busy with their own activities that homework is often quite a struggle to fit in. Some who disagree with this mentality might say that academics should come before sports. It’s true! That is why kids spend six or seven hours a day in a school learning. It’s extremely important to a child’s social, emotional, and academic well-being to be involved outside of school in all sorts of ways. This might include sports, music, drama, dance, and a variety of other extracurrricular activities. Of course we want our kids to be academically solid learners, but we also want them to be well-rounded individuals who can balance all aspects of their lives.

Homework is About Practice, Not Endurance – Imagine doing the same type of math problems over and over again thirty times. It gets old pretty quickly! At some point, it becomes only a race for endurance and no longer practicing the actual skill. So many kids burn out this way. Reducing homework to a minimum, though, is one simple way to get around this. You can still provide the practice and allow for independence while keeping the work to a reasonable level.

These points are not at all to say that some homework is not helpful- it is! Homework, in moderation, can help children and young adults practice skills, learn their weaknesses and strengths, build confidence, and come to class the following day prepared to ask questions and get necessary support. However, some points need to be remembered when you do in fact assign homework.

1. Give homework as practice, not a graded assessment. Homework should not be graded for accuracy. This is the time when kids should be practicing the skills. They should feel free to try new things and take risks. It’s perfectly find if students come to class with homework that is wrong, as long as they made a genuine effort. Homework should aid in the learning process and be a tool to help teachers guide instruction. It shouldn’t serve as an assessment.

2. Homework should be independent work. Some students have extremely supportive homes with parents available to sit with their children through the homework. Others simply do not, for a variety of reasons. The reasons really aren’t important. What is important is that homework shouldn’t need to be something a child does with their parent. The ultimate goal is that homework is done independently. If the homework is too challenging for a student to do on their own, consider changing that student’s assignment or the homework entirely.

3. Accommodate or modify for your struggling learners. The students needing specialized instruction or intervention support in specific subjects will need different and lower level assignments to help them through. As stated above, since not all kids are created equal, it’s impossible to think that a student reading two grades below grade level should be able to read and complete the same passage as someone reading on grade level or above. Consider your learners and allow differentiation. It’s also an important lesson for the kids to learn that sometimes what is fair doesn’t mean exactly the same.

4. Make homework meaningful. If you assign homework, you should definitely give time to go over problems, provide extended examples, and allow students to ask questions. Show students that the homework assignments are extensions of your learning during the day.

5. Be comfortable assigning just a few questions or problems. Sometimes teachers feel like they have to assign twenty or thirty questions for a homework assignment. If the goal is some practice to see if students really understand a skill or idea, just a few problems will often do.

6. If a student is struggling, ask them why. Recently, I had a student who was not completing any math assignments. When I talked to her about her lack of homework, she told me that the math was too challenging for her and she lost her calculator. What an easy fix! I immediately gave her what she deemed to be a “fancy” calculator. Within a week, her math work was caught up and her confidence zoomed through the roof. The lessons here is that if you have a student who is not turning in homework, talk to him or her personally. Find out why. It will give you so much insight to the student’s life and give you ideas for how you can help him or her along the way.

As the school year rolls on by, remember that homework is just one small part of the big equation. Students who are in our classrooms and schools are there for several hours each day. Homework should help reinforce skills, encourage independence, build confidence, and encourage questions for upcoming classes so that students are even more ready to learn. Always come back to these core principles with homework and you can’t go wrong.

If you are a parent struggling with homework completion at home, or a teacher who wants to help parents with this, consider the Parent Homework Helper to save you some time.

Simple Study Strategies Still Work!

January 30, 2015 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Notecards – A Simple Study Strategy

With all new technology, I sometimes forget that some of the best study strategies for my students are the old fashioned ones. Making flashcards out of simple note cards is actually my favorite study strategy. It causes the student to be active in writing out the questions and answers by hand. This alone allows students to be more “present” in their learning. I also love that students can study completely independently with flashcards, by asking themselves the questions and checking their answers. Here are a few “twists” on studying with flashcards that can make it even more fun:

1. Get it Right – Have students work in partners answering the flashcards. One student will quiz the other first. If the student gets the card correct, put it in a pile. If they get the answer wrong, put the card in a separate pile. The incorrect cards must be given again until the student gets all the answers right. Then, students can switch roles.

2. Shout it Out – The teacher shows one flashcard question at a time to partners or a group. Whichever students shouts out the answer quickest earns that card.

3. Around the World Style – The teacher shows one flashcard question to two students standing next to each other. Whichever student gets that question right will move to the next student and they will complete. The student who gets it wrong will sit down in that spot. The goal is for one student to go all the way around the room getting answers correct.

Helping Kids Get Organized!

January 13, 2015 by pathway2success 2 Comments

Homework Folder

As a middle school teacher, organization is one of the biggest areas that I see kids struggle with on a daily basis. As adults, most of us have already established our own routines that work for us and help us be organized. It’s our job as teachers to help students find those strategies and routines. I strongly believe that the same strategy does not work for every person. If the organizational strategy for a student is not working over a period of time, it is time to try something new!

Here are some quick and easy ideas for teaching strategies to help students get (and stay) organized!

1. Use a hole-punched folder for a homework folder. Label one side “Done” and the other side “To Do” for easy homework access.

2. Keep a pencil pouch in every binder. Leave several extra pens and pencils in each binder so you never run out.

3. Pick a weekly “organize day” to go through binders and make sure everything is neat and tidy. This is so much easier than waiting until it’s gotten really disorganized.

4. If keeping multiple binders is too challenging, try keeping just 1 large binder and dividing the classes with tabs. This will ensure you never go to class with the wrong binder and eliminates extra stops that the locker that may make you late.

5. Keep a daily homework log. This one seems so obvious but is often overlooked! A daily homework log will help you keep track of work and due dates.

6. Put those papers away! When the teacher hands papers back in class, take the extra two minutes and put them in the right spot in your binder right away. This will save you time reorganizing later on.

For more tips, lessons, and ideas about organizing, check out my Study Skills Toolkit!