October 3, 2022
October 3, 2022
For many adults, their school years were filled with late-night cram sessions (and with making procrastination a bit of an art form). But now that you have your own children, you likely don’t want to pass on those same study habits to them.
The undeniable truth is that good study habits for students are important. With a few years of experience and wisdom under your belt, you’ll understand now that learning how to study appropriately has long-term gains. Sure, your children may moan and groan about studying, but it’s a great skill to help them cultivate.
So what are some good homework habits? And why are healthy study habits important, anyway? Read on to find out how to build healthy homework and study habits with your children. You may be surprised at how easy it can be – and how much they will appreciate it!
Good Study Habits: What Are They?
If you want to help your children to develop good study habits, you’ll need to start by defining what that means.
A habit is an action that you automatically perform in response to something specific. Setting an alarm clock to signal when it’s time to get out of bed in the morning, for example – it may not be a fun habit, but it’s a habit nonetheless.
A good habit is one that helps you to accomplish your goals, while a bad habit is often a roadblock to your goals. If you were a procrastinator and late-night crammer, you probably got things done, but these bad habits may still have impeded your success in some way. Studying and getting work done without the added pressure of procrastination is a habit that is not only academically sensible, but good for mental health too.
One tool that can be used to create good habits is homework. So how does homework create good study habits? Aside from teaching students valuable material, homework helps them practice being responsible – and if they can learn to harness the power of studying with homework, big tests should be a breeze.
Why Do Study Habits Matter?
There are a lot of reasons why it’s important to help your children cultivate good study habits. Some of the most important ones are:
Focus
When a student has good study habits, they can focus their mind and concentrate on what they’re trying to learn. They don’t have to think about how they’re going to study, because all of their practice will make studying, and the various ways they accomplish it, a habit. They’ll do what needs to be done automatically, without thinking about it – freeing up their brain for important learning!
Mental Health
A child’s mental health is almost always on their parents’ minds. The good news is that good study habits can translate to improved mental health. How? Well, no matter how smart a person is, if they have poor study habits, they will experience more stress and anxiety when they move on to learn more complex topics.
If kids establish good study habits before they start bigger educational endeavors like college, chances are they can avoid the stress that comes from procrastination. For example, starting a large research paper in plenty of time to finish it is a good study habit. If your child habitually starts the work they need to do early on in the process, they can avoid the stress that waiting until the last minute brings.
Grades
Another important factor that can’t be overlooked when it comes to good study habits is grades. If your child has big dreams, starting to develop good study habits in elementary and middle school can set them up to make better grades in high school and college. While it won’t automatically raise their grades, it can certainly improve their chances.
Good Study Habits to Create
What types of study habits tend to build a solid foundation for academic success? There are quite a few. Remember that an approach that works for one person may not for another. The key is to find what does work and do it over and over again until it becomes a solid habit.
A few good study habits you can work with your kids to create include:
Good homework and study habits can make learning and achievement much easier, so help your child to cultivate good habits and watch them bloom.
Featured image by Windows on Unsplash