As winter fast approaches and days start to get shorter and colder, we know it’s going to be hard to keep our children motivated; we all feel the need to hibernate. However, with school tests and coursework all year round, our children need to keep going.

Keeping your children motivated helps them tune in to their feelings of accomplishment and pride, from what they have achieved or learning something new. For example, when they first learn to swim, they are excited and eager to do it again. This feeling of success is internally motivating, so we need to use that mindset for schoolwork.

Some of the following may help keep your child motivated to continue to work hard on their school work at home.

• Set goals together with your child. They must be achievable, e.g. If they have a couple of tasks to do during the week, break them up into manageable snippets but in keeping with when they need to get the task done. Maybe they need to read a chapter of a book by the end of the week, in which case, you could help them by listening to them read to you before bed or just after tea.
• Build fun activities and make plans with your child, such as doing something together as a family. Maybe they have an art project you could all get involved in.
• Break tasks down into small steps, in-between small regular breaks so it doesn’t feel so daunting.
• Give your child choices, such as, “Would you rather do your homework before or after a snack?”
• Ask your child what they did well that day and how they felt when they achieved a goal.

Focus on the positives, acknowledge the negatives, and suggest ways to overcome them when faced with the problem again.