Do

  1. Have patience – with them and yourself
  2. Communicate with teachers often about everything – including emotional behavior of you child
  3. Have a designated work area for your child – distraction free is best but for one of my boys having a “school buddy” plush actually helped concentration.
  4. Set time limits for work to be completed – a full schedule can be overwhelming for everyone – set small time frames to complete individual assignments
  5. Make sure to take breaks (you and the children) – go outside, watch a 30 minute cartoon show, something to give your brains a break
  6. Learn with them instead of just teaching them – its been many years for most of us and there are new techniques. Learn with them may make the assignment easier on both of you.

Don’t

  1. Over schedule you or the children – too many meetings and calls will limit the actual work time
  2. Set unrealistic expectations – this is a new adventure for everyone don’t set the bar too high
  3. Dictate what work they will do – review the agenda and plan the work
  4.  Force things – some days just are not good work days and that okay.
  5. Be too hard on bad grades – as long as they put effort into the work the grade will come in time
  6. Don’t forget this is a challenge for all of us involved – student, teacher, parents – give grace