school system Archives

Get More Involved

As a parent, you need to get involved in your child’s education. You can’t just trust that the school system is going to take care of them and get them to learn what they need to learn. Some parents will create their own curriculums for their children that is separate from what they are learning in school.

You can also just talk to your child’s teacher and find out what is really going on in school. You have every right to ask for a syllabus and work on your own with your child so that their education is supplemented.

One way you can do this is by investing in MindFinity. MindFinity helps to increase Inventive IQ and spark a love for learning through play.

Reward Kids For Good Work

Some parents think that high performance in school is expected and they should only “punish” their child if they don’t achieve those levels. That doesn’t always work for all kids. If your child gets a good grade on a project, performs well in a certain subject (especially one they’ve struggled with), or even put in some extra effort and don’t perform as well, reward them for their hard work.

It doesn’t have to be something big – take them out to eat, spend some time with them, get them a new toy, or just praise them. They will want to keep doing good work to get those rewards – even if they aren’t physical.

Let Them Make Mistakes

Sometimes, your child will fail a test. They will have to stay inside at recess. They won’t make the team or get the lead in the play. You have to allow your child to fail and make mistakes. This is when they will do the learning they need. When they go into the real world, they will make mistakes and have to learn how to not only own up to them, but move on from them.

We all have a natural inclination to protect our children from failure, but usually it is best to let them fail and then show them how to pick up the pieces.

Show Them That Learning Never Stops

As children get older, they think that learning is only a temporary thing. They don’t understand that they will continue to learn things until they are old and gray. Talk to your child about what you are learning – whether it is learning something new at work, learning a new language in your spare time, or picking up a hobby. Once a child (or a teenager) understands that learning is lifelong, they will want to become better at it.

This also means that you need to show yourself struggling to learn things. Even if it is just failing to work a new phone app or taking care of a new plant.

MindFinity Helps Your Kids Do Better In School

If your child isn’t doing well in school, doesn’t like school, or just seems bored, you can help them. Sometimes it isn’t about just getting through school, sometimes you can help your child by teaching them new things or more than they are learning in school.

MindFinity can help you by introducing different activities each weekday that will have your child learning, and get your own creative gears moving. For a few minutes every day, you won’t have to plan out the lessons. Instead, they are delivered to your inbox and you can build from there.

For more information about MindFinity, please click here.

As a parent, there are a few choices that you will have to make that have a lot of strings attached. One of those is whether to homeschool your child versus public school or even private school. Admittedly, there are benefits to all of these institutions, just like there are some issues with them.

Homeschooling: Can You Do It?

Homeschooling is an option that is best for parents who don’t work or those who are willing to use “pod education” styles.

Why homeschooling? The main reason parents school this option is because it helps them to completely personalize their lesson plans for the strengths and weaknesses of their child. Parents spend a lot of time with their children, getting to know how they think and bonding with them. Homeschooling allows parents to speed up or slow down lessons to better fit the needs of their children.

The problem? One of the biggest issues with homeschooling is that children don’t get as much social interaction as they would in public school. Yes, they can be in a pod, but most of those children are all from the same or similar backgrounds.

Public Schooling: Is It Best?

For the most part, public schooling is the default for most parents. This is a free resource that guarantees your child an appropriate education. There are public schools located all over the country with transportation to get there, making it easy for working parents to ensure their children get what they need.

Why public school? There is something to be said about sending your child to public schools so that they get the socialization they need to thrive. They are exposed to many different types of people, including those who they wouldn’t meet in their daily lives.

The problem? Most public schools teach to the lowest common denominator, not really helping children to succeed or thrive. Those children who are naturally gifted tend to get pushed off to the side with a book or given extra worksheets. Class sizes continue to grow, pushing those children who struggle into “low level” tracks from an early age.

What About Private Schools?

For many people, private schools are completely out of the budget unless they can get scholarships. Private schools have many of the same problems that public schools do, but they just put it in shinier packages.

One thing to consider is that private schools tend to have smaller class sizes than public schools, but they don’t have “tracks” that most public schools do. Everyone gets to be together in one classroom. Private schools can also be a bit “cliquey” which can be a problem for children who don’t fit into those molds.

Even so, private schools have programs that can be extremely beneficial for students as they age. They also have alumni networks that can help them with college admissions and jobs into the future.

MindFinity Helps Supplement All Of These Schooling Types

As you can see, there are pros and cons to every type of schooling. MindFinity has been developed to help kids from all different educational backgrounds. Ultimately, it will depend on parents to ensure that their children are thriving in whatever school system they are in – plenty of successful people come from all of these backgrounds.

For homeschoolers, it helps to break up the day and presents information in a way that no other program does. Even better, it can help parents get ideas for how to present new and interesting topics.

For public schools, it helps your child learn how to think and learn instead of just dumping information onto them.

For private school kids, it helps to encourage polymath thinking and can help to fill in some of the gaps that private schools may have.

For more information about MindFinity, please click here.

At the end of the day, if you are weighing homeschooling vs public schooling vs private school, the decision will have to come down to what works best for you, for your family, and for your children. Sometimes, it is a combination of all three, and other times one track will work. Some students start as homeschooled and then go into public or private schools as they get older. The best thing you can do is pay attention to your child and try to meet his or her needs where they are – and don’t be afraid to try something new if what you were doing isn’t working anymore.