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Student Motivation: Helping Your Child Learn

All children are born with the desire to learn. It starts in infancy as they navigate their environment and follows them through all stages of life. However, as children grow and become students in a classroom, parents often become faced with a drop in student motivation. What a parent does to keep their child motivated in school can be key to a child’s success. Simple acts and positive reinforcement on the parents part can help a child become motivated to do well and stay that way throughout the child’s education.

Feed Curiosity

Much like a parent nourishes a child’s body, they must also feed a child’s natural curiosity. A parent can feed this instinct by giving a child plenty of opportunity to be the natural explorer and scientist that they are. By providing the time, place, and freedom to be a curious student, motivation comes naturally and the child will be inspired to find out more. A child that is given the proper tools to continue his or her learning will surely use them to the fullest. A parent that can give not only the proper space but also the tools necessary to ensure that a child doesn’t lose the spark for learning.

Be Accessible

A parent, who makes themselves available to their children when they have questions regarding school or homework, sends the message that they care about how their child is doing. Parents also become their child’s cheerleaders when things become rough or the student feels incapable. A parent who can become vested in their child’s learning encourages the natural student motivation in the child to continue. The accessibility of the parent demonstrates a willingness to be involved and to hold the child accountable for his or her education. Student motivation is often believed to go hand in hand with how involved and interested the parent is in the child’s success.

Build Positive Sense of Self

While a child’s sense of self isn’t directly linked to motivation, it is however; it is one of the building blocks used for success. This is in turn linked to student motivation. For example, a child who views himself poorly is more likely to have lower grades and not put forth as much effort towards learning. On the contrary, that same student who views himself as likable is more likely to do well in school, and be motivated to continue to do well. A parent who helps a child create a positive self-image by complimenting, praising for work well done, encouragement, and empathy for failures, will help to imbed positive student motivation in their child.

Use Awards Sparingly

Many educators and parents alike argue about the importance of rewards for a job well done. The abuse of this system can cause undue stress and anxiety about meeting goals that are set for them. Parents wanting to praise and reward their child for maintaining student motivation are better off to refrain from any outside reward system. I would be best to stick to reiterating the importance of learning, and show their pride for their child’s efforts, rather than their successes. Even a failed attempt is an effort worth praising when a child is motivated to do their best, no matter the outcome. Putting too much weight on achieving the goal instead of the learning process used to get there can deflate student motivation when the goal is not reached.

No matter which steps a parent takes to help their child learn, one thing remains true. Spending time and taking an interest in what the child is learning will surely benefit and motivate the child. The time spent just talking about what a child learns, can positively affect their motivation and can encourage the willingness to learn more. A child’s student motivation ultimately lies within them, but an attentive parent can bring it forth and help it grow.