If you have hired a tutor for your child, you have already taken the first step in helping them to achieve more growth in school. Finding a tutor that meets the specific needs of a student is a crucial part in increasing academic performance. However, in order to fully see improvement in a child, tutoring has to become a consistent part of their schedule. After all, tutoring is much like any other activity that is meant to produce results; if you want to see progress, consistency is crucial.
Consistency and its importance is something adults are quite familiar with in their own lives. If we eat wholesome food frequently, we maintain good health. If we have a stable sleep schedule, we will be well rested and focused throughout our day. If we exercise regularly, we are more likely to see improvements in our physical health. Like our bodies, our minds also need consistent exercise.
A tutor can help strengthen a student’s mind outside of the classroom, but you are less likely to see improvements if you are not consistent. This does not mean your child needs a tutor every single day, nor does it mean your tutor will not understand if something unavoidable comes up. What it does mean is that like your workout or your sleep routine, it works best if you stick to a schedule. The more consistently your child meets with their tutor, the more results you are likely to see.
The concept of consistency helping children to grow applies to many aspects of their lives. If your child plays a sport, they need to show up to practice routinely to get better. If they play an instrument, they need to rehearse frequently to become proficient. No matter what the extracurricular activity, they all have one thing in common: they need to work at it on a constant basis to flourish. Tutoring is no different. Although it is not often viewed as one, tutoring is an extracurricular activity. Its purpose is to cultivate growth in academics. Therefore a child must meet with their tutor on a constant basis to continue that growth.
With all of this in mind, we are aware that kids have busier lives and schedules than ever before. Therefore sticking with a steady tutoring schedule can be a challenge. If your hectic schedule is making it difficult to keep your tutoring appointments, there are some things you can do.
First, if you are considering tutoring for your child you may want to establish what you want your child to receive help with and how often you think they will need this support before the school year begins. Being proactive can help reduce the stress of trying to fit tutoring into an already packed schedule. If you already know you want tutoring to be a part of your child’s routine, finding time for it before your calendar becomes too full will make consistency much easier to achieve.
Second, map out your family’s schedule early on in the school year. Take note of any clubs, sports, or other extracurricular activities your child will be participating in and when they start. This can help you to establish a day and time when your child will be free to put all of their focus on academics. The sooner you can establish a set free block of time, the better. Not only will you be less stressed trying to shuffle activities around, your child will know what to expect and on what days.
Finally, once you have established which days, what times, and how many tutoring sessions you would like your child to receive, be prepared to stay on the schedule. The most important thing you can do is to follow through with the plan. Think of your child’s tutor like a coach. They can’t help your child to improve if they don’t show up. You may want to talk with your child about the importance of their tutoring, when they are expected to meet with their tutor, and what is expected of them during each meeting. If they know that shrugging it off is not an option, the tutor will be more likely to help you with the follow through and make life easier for all involved.
Consistency is important in all of our lives, and this is particularly true for children. Manageable routines help them to grow and learn to their fullest potential. Making tutoring a part of your child’s routine is a great step to helping them succeed. The more constant tutoring is in a student’s schedule, the more potential they can achieve. Contact Dynamis Learning Academy for a free 15 minute consultation to help you jumpstart a manageable tutoring schedule for the next school year.