Homework rage

The best way to overcome the ‘control’ issue is to give your child some control. Now, I don’t mean that you should let them run the house and deal with homework as they please, but give them control at appropriate times, in appropriate ways, and you will notice that homework battles will fizzle down.

Many children quickly learn that homework is their bargaining chip and they will use it to “act out” if there are other, seemingly unrelated things that are bothering them. Of course, most of the time, children are not consciously aware of this thought pattern.

This sense of value has major implications on his sense of confidence and will help increase his motivation. When you value and respect your child (while still maintaining appropriate control), your child will value and respect you… that alone will make homework time more peaceful.

Think about the “homework” you have as an adult: mail to manage, bills to pay, budgets to keep, groceries to buy, school papers to organize, meals to plan and prepare, etc. Think about the skills you need to use to do each of these tasks: reading, planning, organizing, calculating, and filing are just a few.