One of the most heartbreaking scenarios I can imagine in a teaching context is a little child struggling vainly to achieve what is required of him or her.
It is not that he doesn't want to.
It's not because he played too much or studied too little, or didn't pay enough attention.
It's simply because he can't.
He is not ready for that level of requirement, and his teacher or parents, or both, are forcing him to achieve something that's beyond his capabilities.
For some reason we get so caught up in our own, or others, expectations for our children, that we often forget two very important common sense facts when it comes to their education: ·They are not all ready for the same requirements at the same time ·They are not all equally good at everything Being capable of achieving the required level is obviously a crucial factor in a child's ability to learn and in his attitude towards learning.
Children are only ready when: ·They are mentally and emotionally capable of assimilating the information presented ·They have enough life experiences for the information to be meaningful ·They experience minimal frustration in acquiring the skill or performing the task The two academic areas in which a child's readiness is most violated are in language arts and math.
Parents tend to push their children in these areas, especially when they experience peer pressure or have to prepare their child for some achievement test.
The inevitable result is a frustrated parent and a very frustrated child.
And the danger is that, after experiencing failure over and over again, eventually the child will give up trying.
But it does not have to be that way.
If your child is frustrated with his or her assignments you can help.
It's really not that difficult.
All you have to do is lower the requirement level.