The children’s motivation to study depends in many ways, but the role of parents is vital when it comes to fostering curiosity and the desire to learn.
How to Motivate Your Child To Study
Many parents feel frustrated because they see a lack of motivation in their children regarding studying. The lack of motivation can be related to many variables and does not have to be linked to a single cause. Some children and adolescents do not feel like or are interested in studying because they are going through emotional problems, have a learning disorder, are dealing with family problems, etc.
Therefore, it is essential to analyze each case in a particular way to determine a specific action plan. However, some general recommendations can help parents encourage their children by following the essential tips that motivate them to study.
What is Motivation?
Motivation moves us to focus on a specific task making it bearable and stimulating. In short, motivation is what, in a certain way, keeps us alive and excited. Unmotivated people tend to appear dull, listless, and lacking in initiative. In adolescent children, it is common for demotivation to appear when studying, which can be related not only to the characteristics of the student himself but also how the teaching and learning process is carried out. Generally, it is said that there are two types of motivation: extrinsic and intrinsic.
Intrinsic Motivation: It leads people to act for themselves. The internal impulse makes individuals set goals and work to achieve them. Since there is a purpose of its own, no external incentives are needed to carry out the behavior. The person does not act due to the imposition of the environment but gets involved in the activity because it satisfies them and makes them feel complete. For example, a student studies because he wants to become a journalist when he grows up or because he is curious about a subject.
Extrinsic Motivation: This type of motivation leads people to get involved in specific tasks due to the influence of external stimuli. There is no self-purpose or personal goal. Mobilization is derived from the environment. For example, a student studies to avoid being punished for failing.
8 Ways to Motivate Children to Study
As we have been commenting, the motivation to study depends on various variables. However, it is essential to analyze each case specifically. Here are some tips that motivate your children to study and keep their confidence high.
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Instill The Value of Study
A child cannot be expected to be motivated to study if academic performance is considered secondary in his family. Children need to be taught from an early age the value of studying not as an end but as a means to learn and achieve things in life. Instilling in children the importance of learning about the world makes them see homework not as a burden but as a tool to gain knowledge.
This implies that parents are genuinely interested in the school and what surrounds the academic world. They must ask their children how they have done in class, what they have learned during the day, what homework they have to do, when is their next test, etc. If these behaviors do not exist on the part of the reference adults, it is difficult for the child or adolescent to give importance to the study.
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Adjust Expectations
Expectations also play an essential role when it comes to motivation. Parents must know their children well and objectively identify their strengths and weaknesses. Expectations must be set so that confidence is transmitted in the child’s ability to achieve things without setting unattainable standards. Children need to be trusted with their limits and possibilities in mind. Falling into one of both extremes favors the child becoming frustrated for not getting what is expected of him.
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Focus On the Process Rather Than The Result
In line with the previous point, children must perceive that their parents provide value not so much to the final grade but to the process behind it. It is vital that the effort and perseverance in the study are recognized, even when the pass has not been achieved. Some children suffer from learning disorders or difficulties that make it difficult for them to achieve high performance. However, taking care of their self-esteem and reinforcing their commitment is essential so that motivation does not decline.
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Associate Studying with Positive Emotions
Fostering motivation involves creating a positive and happy climate around academic activity. In this sense, the critical role is not only for the parents but also for the center. The study often generates rejection because it is experienced as something tedious. For example, it is not the same to study history “brooding” as to do it by building a story with illustrations and simple language.
Using resources such as games, music, and drawing… is of great help. And, of course, all accompanied by smiles and good humor. Many children develop a rejection of studying because it is experienced as a punishment where errors are pointed out with a very negative connotation. For this reason, it is also crucial to learn to correct from a constructive perspective, understanding the error as one more part of learning.
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Set Goals
Setting goals is especially important to fuel motivation. It can be of great help to write them down somewhere visible so that the child or adolescent can keep them in mind daily. Having goals gives you a “what for,- an end to achieve with the study. However, for this strategy to work, the goals must be well specified and agreed upon with the minor. It will not help to use ambiguous and distant objectives since this will be perceived as something distant and abstract. It is preferable to resort to short-term goals.
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Strengthen Their Talents
Many children feel demotivated at school because they cannot develop their talents. Some minors excel in activities that do not have to be academic. For example, sports, cooking, theater… Sometimes, when academic performance is not as expected, there is a tendency to punish by removing those activities that the child or adolescent likes. However, this only encourages a vicious cycle in which reluctance increases. Self-esteem is also diminished since what the minor excels at is eliminated. Above all, you must always seek to promote the talents and strengths of the child.
Read More: Activities for Kids with Asperger
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Identify Your Learning Style
It is often intended to use the same formula to teach content to all students. However, in the study, not all strategies are suitable for everyone. It is essential to help minors identify their style and the channel through which they best acquire content. Some children feel more comfortable with the audio format; they better retain the information that reaches them through the ear canal. Instead, others prefer to learn the content through the visual channel, using images, diagrams, and graphics. Finally, some minors feel more comfortable with the implementation. Instead of memorizing content, they prefer to apply the information.
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Make Learning Happen Outside the Classroom Too
The center is often expected to be the only one for promoting student learning. However, parents also have much to do when spending time with the family. They must foster curiosity, a critical spirit, and the desire to learn about the world. To do this, cultural plans can be made (going to a museum, for example), encouraging reading at home, and discussing topics in class.
Conclusion
A lack of motivation in academic tasks is related to many variables, so evaluating each case to understand what is happening is always essential. However, parents must adopt an involved attitude to make studying challenging. In this article, we have talked about some general recommendations that can be useful to encourage motivation toward studying in children.
The at-home value must be given to studying and learning, emphasizing the importance of learning about the world and achieving goals in the future. It is vital always to take care of the minor’s self-esteem, praise her strengths, and adjust the expectations about her performance. It is also advisable to know your learning style and set concrete goals. In addition, it is essential to prioritize the value of the process over the result since, often, the effort is not accompanied by the expected performance.
