Study Tips for Parents - Help Your Child Learn and Plan Smarter

Do you want to help your child learn, plan and concentrate better ? Many students find it difficult to study effectively, plan their schoolwork well and stay motivated. Remind Learning has been researching the best learning techniques for 13 years and trainer Misha Foree shared valuable insights for parents during an online information evening.

1. Increase willpower: start homework more easily

Willpower is like a battery : it gets depleted throughout the day, especially after a long day at school. This can make it difficult for your child to start homework in the afternoon or evening. Luckily, you can make this easier with these techniques:

✅ 2-minute challenge

Is your child having trouble getting started? Make the threshold as low as possible. Ask your child to spend just two minutes on homework. It often turns out that once the first step has been taken, continuing becomes much easier.

✅ Create a tidy study space

📌 A messy room or distractions such as a TV or game console make it extra difficult to start learning. A tidy desk with the right book open lowers the threshold to get started.

✅ Reward effort, not just results

💡 Plan a fun activity at the end of the day or weekend, such as a workout or an outing. This gives motivation and perspective : 'This week is busy, but after that I'm going to do something fun.'

2. Better concentration: focus longer and more effectively

In addition to starting, staying focused for a longer period of time is a challenge. These techniques will help your child to concentrate longer and absorb learning material better.

✅ The Pomodoro Technique: Focus in Blocks

• Work with concentration for 20 minutes and then take a 5-minute break .
• After 3 rounds there will be a longer break.
• This prevents concentration dips and helps the brain perform optimally.

✅ Flow: the perfect balance between challenge and skills

💡 Too easy? This leads to boredom. Let your child listen to fast music or set a time limit: ' Do these sums in 5 minutes.'
💡 Too hard? This causes stress. Help your child relax with soothing music or breathing exercises.

3. Smart planning: less stress and more overview

Many students have trouble planning, which results in last-minute studying and stress. Here’s how to make it easier:

✅ To-do lists with concrete tasks

📌 Break large assignments into manageable tasks of 20 minutes or less. Use active verbs:
❌ ' Learning Math' → ✅ ' Completing Math assignments 2 and 3.'

✅ Prioritize with the Eisenhower Matrix

Teach your child to distinguish between:
🔹 Important & Urgent → Do it first
🔹 Important & not urgent → Schedule
🔹 Not important & urgent → Consider
🔹 Not important & not urgent → Skip

With a good system you can prevent procrastination and stress !

Conclusion: help your child learn smarter

Want to help your child with less stress and better grades? Apply these proven learning techniques and find out which ones work best!

✅ Easier to start with homework
✅ Longer concentration with focus techniques
✅ Smart planning for less last-minute stress