When your children are young and you think ahead to their future, what do you see? What do your hopes and dreams for their lives consist of? You may have a picture in your mind, but perhaps the aspect of our children’s lives we put most focus on when thinking ahead to the future is their career. What will they become, out of the endless possibilities available in the world. From a nurse to an astronaut, a football player to a scientist, we all want our children to find a career that they love, that’s rewarding for them both from a monetary point of view, and on a personal level too. When you’re young, all these options are open to you, but fail to provide your children with a good level of education and the options start to become less as the years pass by. It’s so important to give your kids all the opportunities they deserve and education is the key to their future. Here are 6 ways in which you can help your child now, to give them the best possible future later…
- Learning through play
A child is never too young to learn, and while you may feel as if play doesn’t really have any educational benefits, studies show that young children learn well through play and those children who spend more time playing when they are very young are those most likely to be ahead of their class when the more traditional class lessons begin to be implemented.
- Reading to your child
A story at bedtime is such a wonderful time and the educational value of such occasions is often taken for granted. It will fuel your child’s imagination and help them learn to read at an early age putting them in good stead when reading is a key skill in the classroom.
- Save for their higher education
The skills learnt during early childhood education are a wonderful basis for moving on to further education, however, as a child moves along their educational journey, certain fees and expenses are needed to gain that extra level of knowledge that can make all the difference when it comes to a future career. That higher education that will put your child head and shoulders above their peers when it becomes time to enter the job market. Utilising an investment fund such as a Registered Education Savings Plan or RESP is a great way to save for your child’s educational future and maximise the returns on your investment.
- Encourage their dreams
Most children have some wild ideas about what they’d like to do when they grow up, and those dreams are likely to change many times over their childhood and into adolescence, so no matter whether they’re keen to be a pop star, a ballerina, a lion tamer or a dinosaur, don’t tell them it’s impossible, or it’s stupid, encourage them in all their dreams, as one day, one of those dreams may just come true.
- A quiet place for study
Giving a child a quiet and peaceful spot in which to do their homework or simply read a book or follow their own pursuits is a great way to ensure they maximise their study time and get the most benefit from it.
- Reward good marks but don’t be harsh with bad grades
Positivity is the best tool for encouraging children to work hard. Praise them when they achieve, but try not to be too tough when grades slip. Instead talk to your child, find out what is making that subject hard for them and look for ways to overcome the difficulties. It could be something as simple as not being able to see the board in class, or it could be that extra tutoring could be highly beneficial.
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