Some students thrive on the challenges of school. They love solving multi-step math problems, writing five paragraph essays, and and analyzing characters from classic novels. Yet others struggle in school. They melt down at the thought of studying for a lengthy exam or completing multiple homework assignments, and feel seemingly ever-present anxiety when it comes to school. These children may benefit from additional support. How do you know when your child needs a tutor?
Homework Meltdowns
Some children come home from school and complete their homework independently with no or little prompting. If they encounter a challenge, they calmly ask a peer or parent to help them through it. Yet for other kids, the task of completing homework - or at least certain types of homework - can seem insurmountable. They may lose their patience, become easily frustrated, and often have complete meltdowns. When parents try to help, the turmoil sometimes rises - ultimately negatively affecting the parent-child relationship. Often times, a third party tutor - someone who is not mom or dad - can be just the solution for building skills, easing frustration, and preventing these dreaded meltdowns.
Slipping Grades
For many students, the beginning of elementary school is a cinch. They master basic reading and math skills and enjoy completing homework assignments and worksheets independently. Their grades typically remain consistently strong. Yet some students reach a pinnacle - often around 3rd or 4th grade - when the academic demands accelerate and their grades start to drop. If you notice that your child's grades dip consistently for a period of three to four months, he may benefit from some additional support. Certain concepts may confuse him, such as fractions and decimals in math, or metamorphosis in science. He may have trouble understanding what he reads or making inferences from the more complex material. While writing may have previously been a strength for him when it was limited to basic sentences, composing full paragraphs or essays may completely stymie him. In such cases, working with a one-on-one tutor can be very beneficial.
Her Confidence Dips
Parents always find pleasure in raising a confident child who has a strong self-esteem and belief in her own abilities. Yet when this confidence dips - or doesn't exist from the get go - a parent may develop concerns. Often times, when children feel they are not "good" at an academic skill - they see their peers reading chapter books, for instance, when they can only read 3-letter words in basic BOB books - their self-esteem may tumble. They might feel they can "never" be good at math or are terrible at writing when, in reality, with some one-on-one coaching, they have the ability to excel at each of these skills. By building a child's academic skills through tutoring, her self-esteem often improves along with it.
Poor Study Skills
As children move through school, the studying and time management demands increase rapidly. The number of exams and homework assignments quickly rise - often along with additional extra curricular activities and other time-intensive demands - and children must learn to effectively manage their time in order to fit it all in. Many students, however, have poor executive functioning and time management skills. Those who once thrived in school often start to plummet academically as these demands rise. They may push off studying and assignments to the last minute, turn in projects late, or stay up until the early hours of morning to complete all of their work. A tutor can teach these students concrete strategies for more effectively planning and managing their time so their seemingly insurmountable work and activity load feels much more manageable.
Your Child Asks for a Tutor
When most of us were children, the idea of working with a tutor seemed almost like a punishment. Children felt sub-par, or not "good enough" to succeed on their own if they needed a tutor. Yet in our current high-demand environment, with Common Core standards and new advances in our curricula, having a tutor - someone to help students navigate this challenging path - can seem like a gift. The negative connotation connected to tutoring has turned positive and many kids and parents now see the real positive value tutoring offers. In fact, while parents used to be the sole tutor-seekers, many students now self-advocate and ask their parents for a tutor, seeing how this support has helped their peers and friends and can help them too.
