Like most adults, kids can find it pretty stressful for classroom-style education, especially when they struggle to understand what is being taught or find their lessons boring. As a parent, the last thing you want to do is watch your little one become stressed out whenever it’s time to learn. Education is a crucial foundation every child needs, and parents play a vital role in ensuring that their little ones get the best of it. Therefore, it is important to create a less stressful learning environment for your children. Here are some ways to do so.
Find out if your child finds learning stressful
To ease the stress of learning for your child, you need to find out if they do find learning stressful in the first place. Naturally, not all kids are excited about books. This makes it difficult to point out if your child is simply being a child or has specific issues that need to be addressed. Fortunately, there are some specific signs to look out for, such as:
- Refusal to talk about school
- Your child spends an excessive amount of time on homework
- Low grades
- Misbehaving in school
- Concern by teachers
- Changes in attitude
Identify the source of stress
Once you determine that your child is struggling with their academic work, you need to get to the root of the problem. If your child seems frustrated with their studies, your best option is to sit them down and talk with them. Find out their issues, and be sure to speak with them in a loving and understanding tone, and not a judgemental or disapproving one.
Is an upcoming test stressing them out? Are they struggling to understand a particular subject? Do they have a problem with their teachers? Questions like these can help you get to the root of the problem.
Create a comfortable learning environment
It’s almost impossible to do any productive learning in an uncomfortable environment. From the furniture your child uses, to their emotional state, making your child comfortable is easily one of the first steps to putting them in the right state to learn. In school, comfortable and affordable classroom furniture can make a world of difference in enhancing learning.
At home, comfy furniture, a loving and supportive parent, and healthy supervision can help your child learn without much stress. Regarding furniture, try to ensure that you invest in options designed for your child’s needs, considering their age, size, and so on.
Make the learning process more fun and engaging
The fondest memories most people have about their elementary school experiences involve the fun they had with their friends. As parents, you can find ways to create more fun, engaging, and memorable learning experiences at home to encourage your little ones to learn. For example, you can incorporate games into the studies and break up book studies with fun practicals and field trips.
Don’t over schedule
Having a good learning schedule can help promote discipline and keep your child-focused. However, overbearing your child with too much work (especially when home-tutoring) can cause them to become stressed and increase anxiety. It also makes it more difficult for them to study at all.
