Homework headaches?
Helpful hints for you and your kids
By Rob Dalton
With school coming, you might be thinking about preparing for the coming year and how you can help your kids get better grades. You're not alone. A recent study found that nearly 75 percent of parents feel unprepared to help their middle- and high-school students with homework. Many feel that they don't have the resources or knowledge they need to help, and more than half said that homework is a source of tension in their households. This article gives some guidelines and tools you can use to make your household much more conducive for helping your students succeed at school.
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Create better study habits
Here are some ways you can make your household a better place for your kids to study.
| • | Establish a routine. Set aside a specific time every day for your kids to do homework—perhaps while you are preparing dinner, or right after dinner. Throughout the week, check in with your kids about their assignments. When the check-in becomes routine, it's much easier to keep tabs on their general workflow, so you don't end up facing the last-minute frenzy. |
| • | Identify trouble areas. When you sit down with your kids, ask them to show you the types of assignments they're presently working on and to describe areas where they might be having difficulty. Once you identify problems, you can work together to find the resources they need to create work they (and you) can be proud of. |
| • | Create a positive environment. It's no secret that when faced with a choice between homework and TV or Xbox, most kids will ditch their homework every time. That's why it's essential to provide your kids with a good work environment—turn off electronic devices and help them learn to study in a quiet, focused space. Designate a specific area of your house for studying: Try to choose a well-lit space, and keep this area free from clutter so there is plenty of room for books and papers. |
| • | Set up a study group. Kids are social creatures, and a peer group can become a powerful incentive for studying. Consider starting a biweekly study group for your kids and their friends. You can also provide engaging source materials, such as instructional videos, guest speakers, field trips, and more, to help expand on subjects. If you make learning fun, then students will be more likely to engage and learn. |
Give students the tools they need to succeed
In addition to well-structured guidelines and regular routines, kids need the right resources. With 84 percent of kids using a PC to do their homework, making sure that kids have regular access to a computer and the right software is essential to their success. Software such as Microsoft Student with Encarta Premium provides students with comprehensive, subject-specific tools designed to help them complete high-quality homework assignments—in less time.
You can also give your kids access to the everyday tools commonly found in schools—Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook—with Microsoft Office Home and Student. When used together, Microsoft Student and Microsoft Office Home and Student is a resource combo that can help your kids:
| • | Get projects started. A great addition to any student's scholastic arsenal, Microsoft Student offers Learning Essentials for Microsoft Office. Learning Essentials provides access to a wide variety of engaging tools, templates, and tutorials to help students get those reports and presentations started and completed with flying colors—for all kinds of assignments.  Learning Essentials includes several resources to help students at school. |
| • | Become a research expert. Many students use the Internet to help with their homework, but 61 percent of parents say their kids don't always find what they need on the Web. Tools such as Web Companion, available in Microsoft Student, provide in-depth content from Microsoft Encarta in the same browser as editorially selected Web results. Your kids can get the information they need faster and more reliably. |
| • | Excel in math and science. Both students and parents commonly report frustration when faced with complex math and science assignments. Tools such as the graphing calculator software in Microsoft Student help students visualize math concepts with full-color 2-D and 3-D graphing capabilities. Additionally, Online Math Homework Help, included with Microsoft Student, provides step-by-step instructions and hints for solving real math problems from the textbooks their schools use.  The calculator in Microsoft Student can help students with their math homework. |
Take education further
Today's families are busier than ever. Developing good study habits early on will help students excel in school and balance their daily activities. You can help your kids stand out by providing them with helpful guidelines and resources to make the learning process easier and more enjoyable—for you and for them.
Note: All statistics quoted are from the May 2005 MSI-ITM Homework Study. More information is available at the Microsoft Student Press Kit.
