Establishing Balance
The following recommendations were compiled by members of the Parent Institute Committee of the Office of Gifted Education and Curriculum Development. They are based on research and the experience of educators and parents of gifted students in Virginia Beach City Public Schools.
Set Up a Schedule
If your child persistently resists giving up a distracting activity, first talk to your child about the importance of managing time in order to get the work done and still have an opportunity to do what she enjoys. Discuss setting up a schedule with your child and have her contribute to this effort. Then, establish the schedule with the expectation that she will use it as a tool for completing tasks.
Be the Parent
If your child is too engrossed in a distracting activity to adhere to an agreed upon schedule, it is up to you, as the parent, to set limits on the activity. It is within your rights to restrict time on video games, telephone use, or socialization. Essentially, if the activity is impacting school performance, you must accept the responsibility to bring your child’s use of time back into balance even if it upsets her for a while. To be successful at this endeavor remain as calm as possible while standing firm by your decision.
Some children in this situation will insist they hate their parents or that their parents do not love them. Keep a few things in mind if you are faced with this challenge:
The page associated with the link below has a number of tools you can use for a variety of issues around the home. The specific tool at the link above is a way to visually demonstrated to your child how much time is spent on different activities.
Tools to Support Establishing Balance
Set Up a Schedule
If your child persistently resists giving up a distracting activity, first talk to your child about the importance of managing time in order to get the work done and still have an opportunity to do what she enjoys. Discuss setting up a schedule with your child and have her contribute to this effort. Then, establish the schedule with the expectation that she will use it as a tool for completing tasks.
Be the Parent
If your child is too engrossed in a distracting activity to adhere to an agreed upon schedule, it is up to you, as the parent, to set limits on the activity. It is within your rights to restrict time on video games, telephone use, or socialization. Essentially, if the activity is impacting school performance, you must accept the responsibility to bring your child’s use of time back into balance even if it upsets her for a while. To be successful at this endeavor remain as calm as possible while standing firm by your decision.
Some children in this situation will insist they hate their parents or that their parents do not love them. Keep a few things in mind if you are faced with this challenge:
- Remember, you are the parent.
- Remain calm no matter what your child says. You can sincerely assure him that you care for him and are helping him to become a capable person but do not repeat this reassurance. If you dwell on trying to reassure your child you love
him he may calculate that if he just appeals long enough to your desire for his affection you will eventually give in. - Make sure you stand by what you say. Do not go back on your word because your child promises to make changes. You must see an ongoing change in behavior before there is any change in restrictions.
- Discuss the reasons for the rules you are enforcing when your child is calm. Trying to explain yourself while your child is angry may simply fuel the fire. Wait for calm to return and then rationally discuss your reasons with her.
- Remember, you are the parent.
- It is better for your child to learn to manage time with your support than to learn it as an adult when the consequences can be even more severe. Most of the time children will accept the limits though it may take days for a young child or
weeks for an older child.
The page associated with the link below has a number of tools you can use for a variety of issues around the home. The specific tool at the link above is a way to visually demonstrated to your child how much time is spent on different activities.
Tools to Support Establishing Balance
A tool for understanding and prioritizing a daily schedule can be found at http://www.studygs.net/schedule/. The tool at this site can help your child see how much time he spends on different activities. This can be the starting point for planning how to redistribute his time in order to be more successful.
The Study Guides and Strategies site provides a number of other tools for studying, organization and time management that you may want to explore.
The Study Guides and Strategies site provides a number of other tools for studying, organization and time management that you may want to explore.
Reference
Study Guides and Strategies. Time and project management series. Retrieved from the Study Guides and Strategies Online Web site: http://www.studygs.net/