Is there any mommy who wouldn’t want her child to excel in school? Our children are our ultimate pride. Whatever good they do, small or big, makes us real proud of their accomplishments. What more if they standout in school, as in score an ace in exams, win quiz bees, or get into the honor roll?

They say no child is born unintelligent, maybe some are born with mental disorders but even such kids’ intellectual capacity can function well and be improved with proper guidance and treatment. This means that we should never give up in finding ways on developing our children’s affinity for academic activities. Remember that by doing so, we are not simply making ourselves proud of their triumphs, but more importantly, we are building their confidence and boosting their morale in the process. Excelling well in school facilitate their recognition and appreciation of their self-importance which in turn builds their social skills.

While some stubborn parents would argue that their children are liable for their academic standing, in truth, the presence or lack of a motivating environment for children actually have a high impact on their performance. To illustrate, when I was young, I was labeled by my family as the clumsy child for breaking some cups while washing dishes. Relatives and friends who learned about this eventually called me ‘clumsy’ which enforced my mentality that I am bound to break fragile objects when I hold or get near them. As a consequence, I’ve always felt nervous when I am teased or reminded about my ‘supposed clumsiness’ which resulted to my edginess. Not once, I slipped an ankle, dropped glassware, or accidentally sent flying objects from my hands.

Being a mother who value education, my first investment for motherhood was collecting books and learning materials for children. This took time as I only kept aside a modest amount for the educational materials every payday. As my boy grew, he already have sets of picture books, children encyclopedia, science wonders set, brothers grimm story collection, music books with some simple instruments like harmonica, and an album of stories from the bible. My husband and I exposed him to these learning materials whenever possible and our boy was already reciting his ABC even before he learned how to run. For four straight years since he started schooling, he was consistently in the list of their school’s top students. Imagine how my heart wanted to jump out of my chest from extreme pleasure whenever his name is called on stage for some commendation. It’s like winning the Grammy for best in parenting award!

On the other hand, a single mom friend I used to work with complains that his son who’s already in high school is having difficulty reading. Since reading is basic, his incapacity to read well makes him poor in other subject areas too which in turn made him feel inferior. The mother, being a single mom, needs to devote a lot of her time to working so she’d be able to raise her children well but in doing so, neglects her duties in guiding her children with their studies.

As a parent and an academician, here are my tips for parents on creating an environment which encourage children towards academic excellence:

• Create a balance in your child’s life. It doesn’t mean that because we push our children to excel or do well in school, we will cut him off from non-academic activities. Kids’ lifestyle should include fun and recreation too. Encourage their involvement in wide range of activities such as joining clubs, volunteering for a cause, or taking part in activities during family gatherings. Remember the cliché ‘all work and no fun make a life dull.’ What more for a child?
• Make the climate for learning enjoyable and interesting. In training and in classroom teaching, we use unfreezers, deinhibitizers, or structured learning experiences (SLEs) to set the mood of participants prior a learning session. In a trainers’ training I attended some years back, we were taught how to inject humor in our presentations so we can make our sessions lively and avoid participants becoming bored and uninterested.
• Teach your children effective study habits. Discipline and consistency is important in developing study habits. For instance, impose gently rules on watching television. Make your child understand and recognize the importance of having done his schoolwork first so she/he can better enjoy that cartoon show without worrying about unfinished tasks.
• Encourage reading versus inclination on electronic gadgets. A former teacher of mine sadly narrated that the classroom environment during my time has long since changed. Today, students are addicted to technology – portable playstation or PSPs, iPods, netbooks, cellphones, and the likes. Their addiction to these electronic gadgets kept them from reading and focusing on their studies. Before buying them their requested game toy, consider the consequence of your action in terms of its effect on your kid’s fondness towards books and studying. Why not invest on productive and fun edu toys and materials which would encourage them to read and learn at the same time. It would help also that your kids see you like reading as well. Remember how modeling is an effective tool in teaching children.
• Have them recognize the importance of excellence. Explain and illustrate to them the value of excelling in their studies or in their field of interest. Read to them success stories and humbling experiences of famous personalities to motivate them towards success.
• Serve as their tutor, their teacher at home. Make time… always make time. Help them with their schoolwork which would also serve as a bonding session for you and your children.

While those tips can help develop your children’s interest in studying, always make them feel that what remains to be important is that you are proud of who they are, whether they become exemplary students or not.

Like this article? Do you have any ideas or stories on how to encourage children towards academic excellence you may want to share with us? Please use the comment section below sending us a message through the contact form or our email at newmoms101 (at) yahoo (dot) com.