Ideas on keeping children motivated???

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scarlett
Posts: 3664
Joined: Fri Jul 16, 2010 10:22 am

Re: Ideas on keeping children motivated???

Post by scarlett »

It seems to be a common problem that as they are nearing the end our children start making silly mistakes and lose motivation ....they're just fed up.I just kept telling my son that he only had so long to go and that would be it...no more exams and all of year 6 to relax .( laughing to myself as I was thinking of end of year exams , GCSEs, A Levels ..)It's also a waste of all that hard work. It does help of course if it's a school they really want to go to or if friends are going to ...as long as they pass . I also kept saying how proud of him I was.
SEP18
Posts: 238
Joined: Thu Aug 05, 2010 2:18 pm

Re: Ideas on keeping children motivated???

Post by SEP18 »

Thanks Moved but he had a three week break in August when we were on holiday. Perhaps that was the problem .......

It's nice to know that I'm not the only frustrated parent out there ..... Although ..... since Monday ....... he has been quite positive :? I do think that this has come from his Tutor but his next visit is just under two weeks away .... I worked out that he is only going to see her twice more before the big day ..... :o Am really trying hard to stay calm, smile and remain positive. He loves positive praise so that's what I'm focusing on at the moment rather than all the annoying silly little errors :shock: Keeping my fingers crossed. :)
chanceinnorfolk
Posts: 17
Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2011 5:42 pm

Re: Ideas on keeping children motivated???

Post by chanceinnorfolk »

My wife and I would played the good cop bad cop game. My wife would push like mad and set un-realistic amounts of study. When my son objected I would then step in and get him to do a realistic amount. He responded because he believed he had an ally in me, which had the added bonus of him confiding in me.

My son was also getting some low marks prior to the exam culminating in a shocking mock 11+ result, but we took the positive approach that mistakes now are a good thing, better to mess up now than on the day...."you can learn alot from your mistakes".

Boost their confidence by giving them a few easy multiple choice papers every now and then where they can score 90% and above.

I also think it is a good idea to promote the local comp option that you have selected. The whole family entered this process believing a grammar willl be a nice bonus for him. In the end it was my sons calm demeanour but competitive nature that got those few extra marks that secured (by the skin of his teeth!!) his first choice grammar.

Good luck everyone.
sargul
Posts: 56
Joined: Mon May 30, 2011 10:21 pm

Re: Ideas on keeping children motivated???

Post by sargul »

may have to try the good cop bad cop although daddy will have to be the bad cop as I'm the one who does all the work with her! Its really getting to me now even having trouble to sleep but i refuse to let her see this or know!
If I get stressed I blame it on head aches n stuff as she knows I am constantly ill anyway!
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