Falling behind every once in a while is completely normal for any student. As a homeschooling parent, there are many strategies you could try to help your child get back on track, from block scheduling to gamifying their lessons. One of the best ways to help your child is to start by examining the issue and why your student fell behind.
This guide explores the signs that a student has fallen behind, possible causes and practices you can implement to improve their academics.
Signs Your Child May Be Falling Behind
Here are a few common signs of a homeschool student falling behind:
- Declining grades and lack of improvement: Your child may need additional support if they put in the necessary hours of study and still make little progress.
- Lack of interest in school subjects: Some students may fall behind when they feel discouraged or overwhelmed by the information. Students may get distracted, express their frustration about a subject or avoid participation.
- Issues with fundamental skills: If your child has trouble with basic math concepts, reads below their grade level or has issues following multistep instructions, it might be a sign their curriculum is moving too fast for them.
- Loss of academic confidence: Is your child displaying changes in their attitude toward schoolwork? Some signs include showing anxiety about assignments and tests, making negative comments about school, or expressing that they feel they are not smart enough.
Why Your Child Might Fall Behind
Reasons your child might be falling behind in academics include:
- Lack of foundational skills: If students do not master foundational skills in early grades, it may become challenging for them to understand more complex concepts in later grades.
- Lack of motivation: Children may lose interest in school when lesson materials lack engagement. In these cases, it helps to connect schoolwork to the student’s interests and future goals.
- Mental health conditions: Some students may find it challenging to concentrate and stay motivated when they experience anxiety, making it important to foster a supportive homeschool environment.
- Learning challenges: Neurodevelopmental and learning disorders like attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and dyslexia may cause a student to have issues retaining, processing or understanding information right away.
- Incompatible teaching approach: Homeschooling parents should aim to use a teaching method that aligns with their child’s learning style. Not doing so may make it challenging for the child to effectively understand lessons.
What to Do if Your Homeschool Student Falls Behind
Adjusting your child’s current routine and curriculum is a great way to improve their learning experience. Before you begin, remember to approach the situation calmly and remember that this challenge is only temporary. Being positive and relaxed can give your child confidence in your strategies. Here are five ways to improve a homeschool student’s academic understanding.
1. Try Block Scheduling
If your child is overstimulated or overwhelmed because they work on seven subjects in one day, consider block scheduling. Block scheduling involves focusing on fewer subjects per day while placing a larger focus on the subjects they find most challenging.
For example, if your child receives lower grades in math and science, spend three hours per day on Tuesdays and Thursdays working on math. Use the rest of their school hours on a combination of other subjects in which they perform better. You may then spend three hours per day on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays doing science.
2. Create an Improvement Plan
Ask your child about where they’re struggling. Write their answer down and devise a plan or checklist for subject units you can revisit with your child to help them get back on track. Make a note of the activities you want to incorporate to improve their understanding and a timeline for when each task should be completed.
Setting realistic goals helps avoid overwhelming your child. Start with small, achievable goals and celebrate their progress at each step to help them feel successful and motivated to keep working hard.
3. Use Engaging Learning Materials
Is your child’s main concern a lack of engagement and interest? Consider inserting more engaging content into their day. The key is to let them learn according to their unique learning style. If they enjoy hands-on activities, they may be a kinesthetic learner. These learners become engaged and understand concepts better when they experience them. They often learn well through manipulatives, practice problem activities, model-making, science experiments, field trips and real-life projects.
Visual learners learn well through videos in which they can see things in action. You can enhance the learning experience through documentaries, YouTube videos, video-based lessons from teachers and virtual field trips. If your child is an auditory learner, it may help to recommend educational audiobooks they can listen to while helping around the house or playing.
4. Gamify Learning
There are various educational games your child can play to better understand basic or complex concepts. Browse online educational games for the subject they need assistance with, and check whether the game addresses challenging concepts. Online math games are typically the most popular.
You can also consider board games and card games. For example, Monopoly can encourage students to practice adding and subtracting, and card games like Snap It Up! and Clumsy Thief help with reading and basic math.
5. Throw a Subject Party
If you and your child have several lessons to study, set aside an afternoon for a fun learning session. Make the lounge a comfy space to sit in with blankets and pillows, and bring snacks like cupcakes, brownies, popcorn and hot chocolate. These elements relax the atmosphere a bit and reduce the anxiety your child may have toward schoolwork.
Use this time to knock out a few lessons and throw some fun educational games and activities into the mix. You can also incorporate engaging video lessons and watch them with your child on the TV. Encourage them to take notes on their key takeaways during the subject party.
Keep Your Child on Track With Power Homeschool
Implementing practices according to your child’s unique needs is important for consistent progress. Power Homeschool is an online homeschooling program for kindergarten to 12th-grade students that aims to provide a customized learning experience. As the official provider of Acellus® courses, we offer hundreds of course options with video-based lessons taught by experts and practice problem exercises to cater to different learning styles.
We also accommodate different learning needs with a learning system that only advances a child to the next topic after displaying that they fully understand the current lesson. If students do find concepts challenging, we provide extra help videos and resources to reinforce their understanding. To learn more about our self-paced homeschool curriculum, browse our range of Acellus® courses today.
