Top 9 Tips For Parents To Help Your Teen Achieve Academic Success

Top 9 Tips For Parents To Help Your Teen Achieve Academic Success

by GT Scholars

Parents, do you want your teen to succeed in school and beyond? Achieving student success in high school takes a lot of effort. It also takes a lot of patience, motivation and determination. It can be challenging for your teen to balance school work, social life and extracurricular activities, all while trying to reach their goals.

The secret to student success is a combination of skills, strategies and support. These 3 things are the most important things students need to achieve their academic and personal goals. As a parent, it is important that you ensure your teen has enough support and is taught the right skills and strategies needed to help them reach their goals and achieve high academic attainment.

You, as a parent, can do different things to help them along the way. In this blog, we’ll look at the different techniques and tips you can teach your child. It doesn’t matter what level your child’s academic grades are at; if you teach your child the secret to success, you’ll set them up for success.   

Here are a few tips your teen can use to start their journey to academic success. You can try introducing these tips and see which works best for your child: 

1. Remember, Each Student Is Unique

As a parent, you have to remember that each student is unique. This means you should never compare your teen to another student, especially their academic attainment. Doing this can add stress and worry to your teen’s mind, and they could lose focus on their goals. Students learn differently from each other and use different skills and strategies that work best for them. Therefore, as a parent, you should help your teen identify and nurture their strengths while encouraging them to work on their weaknesses by using positive, supportive language to help them improve. 

2. Be Involved

Getting involved in your teen’s life is so important. Although they may not want to share everything with you (and that’s okay), you should allow your teen some privacy. However, you should always take an interest in your teen and try to talk with your teen about their day. Ask them about school and life in general. It doesn’t always have to be a long talk, but a quick daily chat can help determine if they are doing okay or need extra support from you. 

Communication is a two-way street; how you talk and listen to your teen can influence how well they listen and respond. It’s essential to listen carefully and make eye contact. Remember to speak with your teen, not at them. 

This can also let your teen know that you are someone they can talk to if they need help with something. It’s also important to communicate with school teachers if you notice any sudden change in your teen’s behaviour or attitude.

3. Motivate Your Teen

It’s common for teens to lack motivation in school. This sometimes happens if they don’t have the proper support. Most teens need a supportive environment to help raise their aspirations and increase focus and ongoing motivation for learning. So creating an environment of support is essential to their success.

Make a habit of praising your teen for completing a challenging assignment or taking a class that might be difficult. No one is perfect, so ensure your teen knows you don’t expect perfection but simply want them to try and put in the effort. 

Empower your teen to not be afraid of failure and instead help them see value in doing their best. This helps your teen understand the importance of grit and resilience. By following through when things get complicated and making a sustained effort, they can overcome obstacles that may prevent them from succeeding. 

4. Invest in a Mentor or Coach

Mentors and coaches are good sources of support and guidance for your teen. Studies have shown that students with mentors are more likely to succeed in school and university. 

A mentor or coach can empower your teen to recognise and build on their strengths and potential. Having the guidance and support of a mentor or coach can help your teen improve their academic attainment by showing them the right strategies to help them achieve their goals. 

Mentors and coaches serve as role models and instil good qualities and habits in your teen. You can read our blog here if you’d like to read more about why every young person needs a mentor.

5. Encourage them to do the difficult things first! 

Most teens think they have enough time and leave things until the last minute. Studying the night before a big test is not a good idea. Completing homework the morning that it’s due is also a bad habit to develop. 

Therefore, you should always encourage your teen to do the work ahead of time and plan for tests, homework and assignments. Teach them to prioritise their time, do the difficult things first, and not leave things until the last minute. This important skill will not only help them achieve student success but will help them become responsible adults later on. 

However, be careful with putting too much pressure on them. Instead, encourage them to make small positive changes that will eventually make a big difference. You can find out more about the 9 Scholar Success Habits by watching the free expert-led parent webinar here. 

6. A Designated Homework and Study Space

Student success involves a lot of studying. Ensuring your teen has a distraction-free and comfortable area for homework and studying is essential. 

You could set up their desk with everything they need to complete their work, such as:

  • A desk that is comfortable and has enough space to fit a laptop and notepad, so your teen can write comfortably.
  • A bookshelf where they can store all their important textbooks.
  • Desk lamp to ensure they can clearly see while working without damaging their eyes. 
  • Stationary such as paper, pens, highlighters and sticky notes to ensure they have all the tools required to help them study. 

7. Get Your Teen a Planner

A planner is a great start to organising your teen and keeping track of school work and due dates. You can invest in a digital planner they can use on their laptop or phone or get a paper planner they could fill out daily. 

Planners are an essential tool for keeping track of test dates, assignments, homework and daily responsibilities. Your teen can also add their extracurricular activities to their planner. 

8. Focus on the Prize

Even if times get tough or your teen struggles in a subject, always remind and encourage them to keep their chin up and push on. If they get a bad test result, let them know it’s okay, and they should identify where they made mistakes and focus on improving. Encourage them to change their perspective and see failure as an opportunity to learn. Encourage your teen to stay focused on what they want to achieve and why. 

The pressure to keep grades up, be involved in extracurricular activities, and maintain their social life can be daunting and a lot to handle. It’s easy for them to lose focus of the prize and get side-tracked. 

Therefore, you should help set up ongoing accountability systems for your teen. Such as setting study sessions with other students to help keep them accountable and stick to their goals. 

There are so many values and skills that we want to instil in our teens, but sometimes we need help figuring out where to start. At GT Scholars, we have specially designed programmes that can help your child get the right skills, strategies and support to help them succeed. You can watch the free expert-led parent webinar here to find out more. 

9. The Importance of Self-Care

Teens often don’t get enough sleep; some think that’s okay, but it is an unhealthy habit to develop. Whether they’re studying long hours or using their phones till the early hours of the morning, a lack of sleep is not healthy for your teen. A teen’s brain needs rest to function at its best and help them achieve success at school. 

Studies show that teenagers need 8 to 10 hours of sleep a night to function optimally, so help your teen develop a routine that provides enough time for rest.

Additionally, your teen’s mind and body cannot function well when hungry. Along with the right amount of sleep, your teen needs to eat healthily and have a good breakfast before school. A nutritious breakfast refuels teens and gets them ready for the day. Teens who eat breakfast have more energy throughout the day and concentrate better at school.

You can help boost your teen’s concentration, memory and attention span by ensuring they have nutritious foods rich in protein, fibre and whole grains. So you may want to avoid sugary breakfast cereals that will impact their energy levels negatively. 

But sometimes, your teen may skip breakfast because they are running late. If this happens often, it is important to create a morning routine that is time efficient and ensure they have enough time to eat breakfast. You can also pack them a quick healthy to-go breakfast such as a high-fibre cereal bar or fruit.

Here are some focus areas when helping your teen to create healthy habits:

  • Create a good morning routine that prepares your teen for daily success! 
  • Ensure your teen gets enough regular exercise to keep them healthy and focused.
  • Get your teen in the habit of putting their electronic devices on sleep mode an hour before bed. 
  • Ensure your teen is eating a well-balanced, healthy diet. 

Remember, as a parent, if you model self-care, your teen will be more likely to lead a balanced life too. You can read more in our blog about the 7 Traits of Parents with Successful Children.

GT Scholars
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