Strategies to boost children's ACADEMIC MOTIVATION

My daughter is uninterested in her schoolwork and often procrastinates before completing it. Please share some strategies to motivate her academically.

- NIVEDHA M.

— Miraya Khan, Mumbai

Talk with your child and understand the root cause of her disinterest in studies. This will enable you to address her lack of academic motivation better. Here are my recommendations.

• Use differential reinforcement to encourage her. For example, reward her academic efforts with small gifts or treats. Take care not to reward behaviour that distracts her from studying.

• Create a token economy system to manage her study habits. Ideate small tokens that she can earn for studying and can exchange for a reward later. This helps her understand the concept of working towards a goal.

• Set achievable goals. Encourage her to set short-term, realistic, and manageable goals. For example, she could break her lessons into small portions. Achieving small goals will give her a sense of accomplishment and confidence.

• Use timers during study hours. Allocate a limited amount of time for each study session using a timer to alert her when it’s over. For longer study sessions, set alarms to go off at regular intervals to allow for short breaks.