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Post by cannmom on Apr 5, 2016 16:47:13 GMT
Help! DS just got his grades for this term and they are dismal. His problem seems to be 1) LAZY and 2) very un-organized. Lots of missing homework assignments that he swears he did. We are going to talk to his teachers and see if they have any ideas about what we can do. Has anyone else gone through this with their child and have any suggestions that really made a difference in helping them be more organized?
Things we are going to try are: no video games for awhile, going to have a more structured list of what needs to be done after school instead of letting him wing it on his own. I would like to have some sort of printed sheet for him to write down homework assignments, test dates, etc... His school has an agenda you can buy, but I hate to spend the money on something that he will only use for less than two months. His binders are a mess and he just shoves papers everywhere. He really needs a system that works and that he will use. I have hesitated in the past trying to tell him how to do it because I know it needs to be something that works for him instead of what I think will work. I really think he has no system at all. Everything is a mess.
I will take any and all suggestions and encouragement to heart. Its so hard when you know they are capable of so much more than they are accomplishing.
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Post by debmast on Apr 5, 2016 16:54:27 GMT
I have a 15 year old DD who is pretty organized.
The first thing she will tell you that keeps her organized is her planner (which sounds like your agenda). She writes down EVERYTHING. Every HW due date, every quiz, every test, every project, every tutorial. Her HS Soccer practices and games. Her club soccer stuff. Any social things she is going to attend. So the she can know what her whole week looks like and plan accordingly.
He also needs to find what system works for him. My older daughter (not the 15 year old) liked separate folders or binders for each subject. My younger likes more of a binder with separate sections for each subject. She also has a separate one for "Homework" or any work that she needs to turn in.
You could set up a system for him, but if that system doesn't work for him, it's going to be more of the same. Talk to him and see what he thinks will work.
You might also call the school counselor. They might have some suggestions or even a tutorial that he can attend for organization.
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momto4kiddos
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,153
Jun 26, 2014 11:45:15 GMT
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Post by momto4kiddos on Apr 5, 2016 17:15:04 GMT
Our schools from 1st grade on did agenda books - writing homework down in them as a class in the early years. It continued right through high school.
One thing I did with my ds when they got lockers was to color code the subjects for ease. He took to the system and really liked it (notebooks, folders, book covers were for one subject all the same color.) Another thing I found was Mead notebooks that have folders built right into the front of the notebook. Keeping things together and easy to find is a good start.
With that said, we encountered problems using systems and remembering or caring what was what in the later years of high school. I was never more relieved than the day he graduated, lol.
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tincin
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,378
Jul 25, 2014 4:55:32 GMT
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Post by tincin on Apr 5, 2016 17:15:06 GMT
Not certain how old he is but it might be time to let him attend the school of hard knocks and face the reprocussions of his actions. He needs to want to take care of business and one way to do that is to spend an extra semester at summer school or repeating his classes. What happens when he goes to college or trade school? You won't always be able to help him fix his problems, perhaps he needs to learn to be responsible for his own issues of school work and grades.
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Post by debmast on Apr 5, 2016 17:18:30 GMT
Our schools from 1st grade on did agenda books - writing homework down in them as a class in the early years. It continued right through high school. One thing I did with my ds when they got lockers was to color code the subjects for ease. He took to the system and really liked it (notebooks, folders, book covers were for one subject all the same color.) Another thing I found was Mead notebooks that have folders built right into the front of the notebook. Keeping things together and easy to find is a good start. With that said, we encountered problems using systems and remembering or caring what was what in the later years of high school. I was never more relieved than the day he graduated, lol. Ours also start with the planners in 1st grade. Then it just becomes habit I think because they use it year after year. |
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Post by theroadlesstraveledp on Apr 5, 2016 18:53:28 GMT
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Marina
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,504 
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Post by Marina on Apr 6, 2016 19:28:39 GMT
Our junior high school well equipped the kids with a study skills class. They required a regular use of an agenda and binders with avery dual pocket dividers. Some of his classes require a separate binder. The pocket dividers are labelled for each class and include one pocket for work in progress and the other for returned work. My son has a separate folder that has 8 pockets in it--sold by Target, with each pocket for one class. He uses this for work that is completed and ready to be turned in. This is kept with him at all times. It makes it easy to find and turn in the work.
My freshman is kept very busy with band events and these organizational tools have equipped him. He looks at his homework and plans how to get it accomplished. And this week with band practices from 3-10 p.m. it is critical.
We typically do ban video games during the week.
At the beginning of the year he thought back to his study skills teacher in 6th grade and was grateful for how she prepared them for high school. So I don't think it's a case of learning by "hard knocks". I think it's good to instruct him on how to organize his materials and how to use an agenda. If he then resigns himself from all that to me that's when the "school of hard knocks" would come into play. I don't think all kids have an organizational streak. It has to be learned.
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