As parents, we all want our children to be successful in school.  Below is a list of ideas that will help you and your child attain that goal.  Read each of the following and put a check mark by the ones you are doing well and then give yourself a pat on the back for doing a great job.  For those you did not check, try and work on them separately over the next months.  Using these ideas and working together as a family will help your child to be a better student in school and give them the extra boost to be academically successful.

• Make sure your child has an excellent attendance record. When you allow your child to stay at home because of whining or pleading, your actions say that you think school is not important.
• Never say negative things about your own school experience. If the child hears you say that you hated school when you went, the child (wanting to be like you) will decide that he or she hates school also.
• Never say that you don't like to read. Parents are the most important people in a child's life. If parents don't like to read, the child will not like to read either.
• Let your child's teacher know about concerns in the family that may make the child have a bad day, or make the child unable to focus on schoolwork. Examples are such things as a car accident, a death in the family, a sibling in the hospital, or the child having trouble sleeping during the night because of leg cramps.
• Don't wait for the teacher to call you if you think there is a problem at school for your child. Always feel free to contact the teacher and be proactive for your child.
• Always be positive about small steps your child takes toward a larger goal. An example: If your child has 18 spelling words and can spell 12, be positive about those that your child can spell. Break down the remaining 6 words into three groups of 2 words each, have a small celebration when he or she has learned 2 more words, and then go after the next group.
• Do not do homework for your child, but always 'check up' on how assignments are going. Give helpful hints and offer suggestions, but if a child cannot do his or her own work, the teacher needs to know that from the homework the child turns in. If you correct the mistakes, the teacher will not know the areas in which your child needs help.
• Make sure your child gets a good night's sleep before a school day. Turning out the lights and leaving a CD/tape player on the bed with recorded stories is a good way to get children to calm down and become ready to sleep. Do not leave the books that come with the recordings. Let the children close their eyes and imagine the pictures that the words of the story evoke.
• Make sure your child eats a good breakfast each morning. Learning takes energy, and energy comes from a good night's sleep and a healthy breakfast.