3 Questions to Ask as You Prepare for Next School Year
Whether this year has been full of triumph or tears (or a mixture of both), now is the time to start looking ahead to what’s next. Your child is about to have a summer break full of fun and relaxation, but what can you be doing to minimize the stress that’s coming and to prepare them for a new school year?
Here are 3 questions to ask as a parent as you prepare for school next year:
1. Do I want next year to look and feel the same as this year?
Maybe some things about this year were great. Maybe your child found a good friend group, thrived in sports, and stayed engaged in a hard subject. These are things to celebrate and note that you want to try to repeat them!
But what things do you want to be different?
- Maybe you wish your child would work more independently.
- Or maybe you want to minimize those teacher messages saying that they’re distracted, disruptive, or unengaged.
- Or maybe you want your child to FINALLY feel successful at reading, math, or another subject that has always been a sticking point.
Once you have this list, ask yourself: what would it take to make these changes a reality?
If you’re not sure where to start, assessing your child’s cognitive skills may be an option you haven’t considered. The reality is that cognitive skills impact every area of life—not just academics.
So if you want to see lasting change in your child’s motivation, relationships, behavior, as well as academic performance, finding out their strengths and weaknesses is such a valuable step to take.
Learn more about testing cognitive skills here.
2. What new “big things” are coming at my child next year, and is he or she ready?
Each school year has its own set of challenges and new things, but there are some hallmark changes that can shock students and families if you’re not prepared.
For example, in 3rd and 4th grade students are really hit hard with reading independently (and needing to comprehend what they’re reading), as well as more complex math topics like fractions, multiplication, and division.
In middle and high school, every year is new and progressively harder, and your child will need to be more organized, to study independently, and to become independent learners.
If these areas are not your child’s strengths and you go in blindly, it’s a recipe for more struggle and stress than necessary.
If you want your child to feel confident and successful in the year ahead, do some research to find out what’s coming up—and how you can help your child be ready!
3. What labels from this past year can be shed, and how will we do that?
As we go through life, we naturally acquire a variety of labels. Slow. Strong student. Disruptive. Lazy. Exceptional. Above/below average.
While we can’t avoid these labels completely, we CAN get back to the learner beneath the labels to help your child achieve his or her best. This is what LearningRx is passionate about.
Your child’s brain is incredible, whether they’re performing well in school or not. We are here to help unlock your child’s greatest potential to learn more easily and thrive academically as well as in other areas of life.
If you want your child to have a fresh start next year free of the burden of labels, priming their brain with brain training for easier focus, memory, reading, and learning may be the answer.
School Prep: Prevent the “Summer Slide” Before It Starts!
Every summer, students experience a “summer slide” where they forget some things they’ve learned or regress in some areas. Unfortunately, for many students who struggle anyway this means that they have even more ground to make up when they return to the classroom in August.
In between your lake trips, beach vacations, and pool days, what if you could give your child’s brain the tools it needs to learn more easily next school year?
What if instead of looking ahead at next school year with dread and fear, your kids were able to face it confidently, knowing they were ready?
This is what brain training offers to so many clients every year. Doing your program during the summer means it won’t conflict with other after school activities—and they’ll be set up to succeed in the school year beginning at day 1!
Our summer schedule often fills up, so now is the time to start the process if this is what you want for your child.
Contact us today to get started!