Motivated Kids

Motivated Kids 389

How do you have motivated kids without stressing them out? Whatever happened to childhood? In this episode, we talk about helping your kids be kids and motivating them to be their best.

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When I attended conferences one of the most consistent questions I received was how do I motivate my kids to learn?

There is nothing more exciting than a child who is excited about learning. But as a parent how can we motivate our kids to want to learn and do more? Is it just personality? Some kids are more motivated than others? Or is it something we can do in our homes to facilitate this motivation?

Motivated Kids

There is a key to motivation and that is to find a child’s passion. You don’t have to motivate kids to have fun with their friends, or play on an electronic device, or watch a favorite movie, do you? They are highly motivated to have fun, and that is the issue. Usually, school work or chores are vying for a space in a child’s life that is unsurmountable. Be sure your expectations match your child’s ability. Young children under five need a parent sitting there to help keep them on track. If your child is doing school work, having them open a book while you walk away isn’t a good idea. Motivated kids should be the norm in your home.

Parent attitude. What is your attitude when it comes to giving assignments or chores? Are you enthusiastic or are you mirroring the child’s drooping shoulders? (Explain the concept of pop-quiz.) The difference between parents and the teacher is vast. As an educator, I loved my class, but as a mom, I really love my class and I’m with them 24/7 which means that we all need to get along. But it also means that my kids know I care. Yet they don’t. We *think* they should know we care and are excited about their accomplishments but they are not always aware of this which is why positive reinforcement is important. Something we may take for granted.

Here are a few ways that will help!

Teach good study skills – this may mean mom or dad is sitting in proximity available to help a struggling student.
Habits – it takes about thirty days at least to create a new habit. If you want your child to have good study skills, or even do chores correctly, that means practice over and over again. Having a sport they enjoy does encourage good work in the area of academics because you can explain to your child that once school work is completed they will have time to practice. My college kids are students due to the discipline that comes from sports. My friends whose kids are musically inclined to explain that the same discipline helps them.
Expectations – many times kids don’t know what is required. “Get your homework done.” or “Do your chores,” may not be specific enough for your child. Be sure they understand what is expected. Sometimes kids need to be exposed to different things to find their passion.
Check off list – or set goals. If your child knows what is expected, and there is some satisfaction in checking off a list! This can help tremendously.
Positive reinforcement – tell the children that you are proud of their accomplishments, even if it is “good try,” that helps.

Give your child time to think. This is a pet peeve of mine that we pack our schedules and theirs to overflowing so there is never any time to find their passion let alone develop it. We focused on making this a priority in my family and my kids’ have discovered reading, writing, building, mechanics. and sports as passions. In fact, college scholarships and honors came from these passions they discovered while homeschooling.

Relax and refresh happens during this time to “think,” and it will cause your kids to consider what they are interested in pursuing. When I am stuck on a solution to a problem I walk away from the computer and do something else, and then the idea comes to me.