Empowering students is a big deal. Your middle schooler will frequent a mandatory learning environment for several years, whether in a classroom, homeschooling, or e-learning. With all that time spent on academics, you at least want them to enjoy what and how they’re learning.
As a parent, you have the power to positively impact your child’s education experiences. This post will explore proven strategies to empower your child’s education journey. You’ll discover tips, resources, and innovative approaches to support your child’s learning and help them thrive academically.
Let’s get started!
Proven strategies for empowering students at home
Most resources agree that setting schedules/routines, setting expectations and goals, conducting homework help, and acting as positive role models in the home are sure-fire ways to influence healthy learning in children.
Empowering students should extend beyond the classroom. Teachers are excellent, but they can only facilitate some of the education your child needs.
Flex College Prep says parents can empower their students at home by creating a conducive learning environment and volunteering on campus.
They recommend creating a quiet, organized space for your child to do their homework routinely. Ensure they have the necessary supplies (such as textbooks, notebooks, and writing instruments) and do your best to help them maintain a space that limits distractions, like excessive noise or screen time, during study hours. Flex also says modeling an organized workspace will help your child develop organizational skills as they grow and create their own workflows.
When volunteering at school, be intentional about supporting the events and extracurricular activities your child is most passionate about. Sign up to bring snacks for the soccer team or volunteer to make costumes for the play. Your kid may not have lines in it, but they are no less excited about being on stage. Encourage their excitement by displaying yours through action.
Speaking of action, pursuing personal growth is an exceptional method of empowering students. Your actions can illustrate the value of lifelong learning for your child.
Cyber Wise highlights other tidbits, such as demonstrating the relevance of academic subjects through everyday examples, showing how math, science, and history shape our daily lives, prioritizing learning opportunities over busyness, fostering recognized passion through projects and assignments, taking your kids on educational excursions like museums and historical sites, and building a culture of reading in the home.
Don’t underestimate the power of self-directed learning. We know this can be highly effective when we see how quickly babies and toddlers learn to scroll through YouTube to watch their favorite shows.
Rather than being passively taught by a teacher or parent, children in self-directed learning environments actively seek out information and resources to build their knowledge and skills. You can stimulate this level of learning by purchasing educational games, books, and shows that enhance your child’s academic content at school.
It’s easy to overlook the words we use. But the jokes, innuendoes, and insider knowledge we use in front of the kids can have adverse effects when we’re not mindful of them. Wonder School reminds us that kids believe what they hear.
Just think about when you believed an untruth about yourself because an adult said it to or in front of you. When empowering students, be careful of how you comment on their struggles with homework or poor grades and how you deal with the frustrations of helping them through these challenges. Be intentional about being positive, enthusiastic, and all-around mindful of your words and actions.
Empowering your child’s learning at school
Put their teacher on speed dial.
Well, not technically, but the point we’re making is constant communication with your child’s teacher. Attend parent-teacher conferences (actively participate in discussions about your child’s strengths and areas for improvement) and take their teacher’s feedback seriously. They may be spending more time with your kid academically than you are and may have valuable insight into blind spots you may have missed. After all, you both have the same goal: to help your kid reach their highest academic potential.
Encourage curiosity.
Support your child’s education at home by motivating them to ask open-ended questions at school. Help them be fearless in asking questions about subjects they don’t understand and check in with them on how responsive their teachers are to their inquiries.
Allow them the freedom of choice.
We’ve written before about the importance of autonomy for middle schoolers and youth. Part of empowering children means involving them in decision-making. Giving them free rein over their bedtime or access to the candy cabinet may not be the best move. Letting them choose their seat at the table for dinner, the film for family movie night, or their clothes for school are all non-evasive ways to practice freedom of choice at home.
Also, embolden your student to share their ideas with their classmates and teachers and motivate them to stay engaged with their assignments and classroom activities.
Making online learning less tedious and more successful
The good thing about e-learning is that many students have become more accustomed to it due to the pandemic. The bad thing about e-learning is that more students may be tired of school online. Incorporating fun is how parents can combat the mundane aspects of online education. Schedule virtual play dates or breaks between work time to do something recreational with them.
Removing distractions may be the number one strategy for successful online learning. The homework station should absolutely be separate from where the gaming console lives.
E-learning environments should be comfortable but not so comfortable that your child is too distracted by their favorite things to pay attention to assignments.
More resources for empowering your child succeed academically
The Parent Zone is an excellent place to seek resources to empower students. It’s where we push parents to be the best for “you” through parental resources, insight, and community. The Department of Education Resources for Parents and Families also has helpful content to help you feel at ease with parenting.
For more tips for empowering your middle schooler, check out our Parent Teens articles here.
