10 Tips to Avoid School Project Panic

You are eight years old and you’ve been studying colonial Sydney with the rest of your Year 3 class
 
Your teacher gives you your first ever school project – and you’re excited.
 
You race home, full of ideas about building a model of a convict hut.
 
You talk about it with your mum and dad, find a shoebox that’s the perfect size for renovation and raid your little brother’s collection of toy farm animals to add that extra bit of authenticity.
 
Then you work all weekend to build a simple but sweet version of a two-roomed cottage, complete with a veggie patch and chook pen.
 
On Monday, you proudly take your masterpiece to school…
 
only to be confronted by Bradley’s 3D diorama that depicts all 11 ships of the First Fleet on a fully operational harbour, complete with 30 tiny Rum Corps soldiers and spear wielding Aborigines in the background.

Thank you Bradley…or rather, thank you Bradley’s mum…because you know that Bradley could not possibly have built such an impressive creation on his own.
 
Unfortunately, this scenario plays out in classrooms with alarming regularity.
 
And it’s not restricted to construction projects.
 
Attend any junior public speaking competition, sporting event or creative arts performance and you’ll see the same thing…parents who are just a little bit ‘too’ involved in an effort to guarantee their child’s success.
 
Occasionally parents forget that teachers who work with their kids every day know exactly what each child is capable of. On occasion, an uncharacteristically brilliant project performance can even have the opposite of the desired effect.

Yet some parents can’t help themselves. When a school project comes home, they make it their personal mission to ensure that their child shines.

Most of the research on this subject suggests that when it comes to projects and assignments, supporting children’s independence and refraining from being controlling helps kids to have better learning outcomes.
 
So how can mums and dads manage the projects and assignment minefield?

10 tips to get your family through your child’s next school project

1. Help your child to interpret the requirements of the assignment.
Questions like ‘What do you have to do?’ ‘When is it due in?’ and ‘What did your teacher say?’ will help your child to clarify the task.

2. Mark the assignment’s due date on the family calendar
For children who are visual learners, this strategy is a positive way to keep them focused on their task over a period of time.

3. Help your child to break the project down into smaller tasks.
Develop a daily schedule that will help your child to manage time well and avoid that ‘night before’ rush.

4. Help your child to research.
Talk with your child about what information is needed so that they can make decisions about how they will find it. The internet, library and people in the community that they can interview are a good start.

5. Purchase necessary supplies early.
A hint for first timers – paper mache takes ages to dry!! Get to the shops early to buy the craft glue, cardboard and decorations your child needs. This will ensure that your child is engaged, making decisions and has all the resources required to get started in plenty of time.

6. Help your child with structure
Some kids need a pattern to follow, so if your child works best with visual reminders, draw up a blank table and encourage them to place their ideas and information into a logical order before starting their task

7. Introduce your child to people who can help
This is particularly useful for projects that involve interviews. If your child is required to talk to someone they don’t know well, you can smooth the way by making the first approach, but encourage your child’s life skills by insisting that they call and ask for the help they need themselves. It’s not only character building, it’s also plain good manners.

8. Be available to proof read your child’s work
By all means help your child to improve their expression, but make sure that you don’t re-write your child’s work for them without their involvement. Encourage your child to read their work out loud so that they can determine if it makes sense. If they decide that their ideas can be expressed in a more effective way, brainstorm ideas and help them make better choices.

9. Be positive and encouraging.
Project and assignment work can be challenging for many kids. Acknowledge your child’s effort and give plenty of praise that recognises their effort.

10. Remember… don’t take your child’s ownership and independence away.
The teacher wants to see your child’s work…not yours!
 
                                                                                                                       © Sonja Walker 2010

Do you have some surefire homework or school project tips?

Share them in our forum below!