Improving Homework Completion Rates

Getting children and teens to complete homework each night is a struggle for many parents. Sometimes children blatantly refuse to complete homework, while in many cases, they just have trouble staying organized enough to manage their time and remember to complete all assignments. While the specific needs of each child and teen may be somewhat different, here are a few general strategies for improving completion of homework.

1)      Make sure your child/teen has an accurate list of his/her assignments each night. Encourage them to carefully write down assignments in an agenda book after each class (or task list app at school if allowed). In addition, when they get home, have them check Edline or whichever online program their teachers use to post assignments (as applicable). Once your child/teen has an accurate sense of their assignments for the day, have them make a list of all of their assignments. This can be done on a piece of paper, large white board, in an app such as Reminders, To-Do, or another task list app. Then, next to each assignment, have your child/teen estimate how long each assignment will take and note that next to the assignment. Finally, have your child/teen complete each assignment and check it off their to-do list once it is complete.

2)      The ultimate goal with setting up a homework completion system is to provide your child/teen with a system that works for them that they can use independently to successfully complete homework assignments. Initially, you likely will need to monitor your child/teen with this system to ensure task completion. However, the goal is to reduce the frequency that you have to monitor your child/teen’s completion of homework. For example, you may spend the first two days walking your child/teen through each step. Then, you may be able to just check completion of homework at the end of each day for another week or two. Eventually, you may be able to check homework every few days or weekly to make sure it is being completed and turned in.

3)      Talk with your child/teen about what kind of system would work best for them. Let them give you suggestions on what would work for them.  The system discussed on item 1 is just one method for recording assignments and completing daily homework assignments. It can also be used as a framework for creating your own homework system with your child/teen.

Conclusion

The strategies discussed for homework completion are pretty simple: make sure your child/teen has an accurate record of what assignments are due, make a list of them and estimate completion time in order to manage time more effectively, and then check off assignments from the list as they are completed. The goal with developing any homework system is to simplify the number of steps needed to complete assignments successfully and provide children and teens with tools to complete assignments with minimal parenting monitoring. These suggestions should be used as a guide in figuring out what combination of strategies would work best for your child/teen in order to improve completion of assignments. Stay tuned for a future post, which will further explore issues related to homework completion and provide strategies related to completing long-term assignments in a timely manner. 

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Dr. Carey Heller is a licensed psychologist with The Heller Psychology Group LLC in Bethesda, Maryland. He specializes in work with children, adolescents, and families, and is happy to answer questions and provide consultations for individuals who are considering pursuing treatment, an evaluation, or other services for their child, adolescent, or themselves. Dr. Heller can be reached at (301)-385-2610 or careyheller@thehellerpsychologygroup.com.

*Disclaimer: The previous information is intended as general guidance based on my professional opinion, does not constitute an established professional relationship,  and should not replace the recommendations of a psychologist or other licensed professional with whom you initiate or maintain a professional relationship*