When it comes to helping your student set goals and intentions for the new year, it’s important to lay out practical, achievable steps that they can monitor for progress and schedule into their busy days. Instead of something like “do better on tests” or “get better grades,” practical goals need to dig deeper. What steps need to be taken in order for these bigger-picture goals to happen?
If you and your teen are at a loss about where to start, here are some practical goals you can set together to help them feel more confident and independent in their ability to succeed academically.
Practical Steps for Teens in Key Areas Where They May Need to Improve:
- Studying – Goals Deeper Than Just “I’m Going to Study More”
- Schedule out study blocks for every subject every week. Treat these like appointments that you fit in between sports practices or other commitments so they don’t get pushed aside.
- Practice active studying strategies that force them to engage in material in different ways.
- Make a plan to review all content from the class or do review practice problems at least once a week. This helps to exercise recall and keep concepts fresh.
- Organization Goals for Teens
- Schedule a weekly time to review paper materials, digital files, and assignments to make sure everything is filed correctly and easy to access
- Find a planner, calendar app, or reminder system that works for them. (Hint: it’s probably not going to be what works for you, but help them do some trial-and-error to find the right fit!)
- Steps to Improve Test Performance
- Review content from each class for one hour per week so you’re not cramming the night before.
- Study actively during your study sessions (“reviewing your notes” is NOT studying!)
- Practice good test-taking strategies. Help your teen take the time to learn tips and tricks for multiple choice tests. Make a plan going into each test to know how they are going to approach the types of questions it will include.
Read More: 3 Tips for Better Test-Taking >>
- Investigate Homework & Grades
- Institute a nightly check in system to provide some accountability, making sure homework is done (without you having to nag them). Work together to develop a system that allows them independence, but still helps them feel supported.
- Look at the types of grades for each class to see where the biggest struggle is, and focus energy there. If it’s homework, create a system to turn it in on time and more accurately. If it’s tests, focus on upping your study skills. If it’s classroom participation or another category, tease those apart to see what steps could help them
Watch: Reasons Kids Have Late or Missing Assignments >>
Building Executive Functioning Skills for Better Independence & Confidence
Ultimately, all areas of learning, academic performance, and executive functioning come down to having a strong cognitive foundation. People can’t maintain organization, retain what they’ve learned, stay engaged, or problem-solve without these foundational cognitive skills. If your teen consistently struggles, seems “lazy” or “disengaged,” can’t seem to make their performance match their potential, or is at a loss about how to do better in school, investigating these underlying skills could be what makes all the difference.
At LearningRx, we work with individuals of all ages to target and strengthen the underlying brain skills you use every day for thinking and learning. If your teen’s brain seems to be struggling to keep up with the pace of their life or content in their classes, it’s critical to dig deeper and find out why.
All the support and accountability in the world won’t foster independence & confidence unless the brain has the tools for successful learning.
