Problem:Â My child canât keep track of what needs to be completed for the week.
Explanation: Plan/Organization: Students relied upon looking at the board in the classroom to see what the daily assignment is and looking at the weekly calendar to see work due that week.  And teachers were reminding them daily of their assignments.
Tips/Strategies:Â
This isnât something they may have needed to do in the past â so we recommend either verbal praise, dessert, or reward for completing this new task.  Also, you may want to do this with your child the first time. Check the teachersâ emails together and create the list. Offer help figuring this out.
Problem:Â My child canât remember what he/she should be doing in the moment.
Explanation:Â Working Memory: Students relied upon their teacher to give them the steps for each assignment, and students could look around at what the other students were doing to keep them on track.
Tips/Solutions:Â
Problem:Â My child is constantly distracted while working and keeps wandering around or looking at his/her cell phone.
Explanation: Inhibition: Your child has relied upon the teacher to create a quiet classroom where everyone is working on the same thing and the noise level is low. Breaks are scheduled. Phones remained in the backpacks or pockets and only used during break times.
Tips/Solutions:
Problem:Â My child knows what he/she should be doing â but just doesnât do it.
Explanation: Self-Monitor: Your child is used to the teacher wandering around the classroom monitoring that he/she is working. The student has never had to have the self-discipline of having to monitor themselves all day.
Tips/Solutions:Â
Problem: My child doesnât move on to the next activity. My child gets stuck on one activity.
Explanation:Â Shift: Your child is used to bells and announcements transitioning them from activities and breaks.
Tips/Solutions:
Problem:Â My child gets frustrated and upset easily on assignments.
Explanation: Emotional Control: Your child is adjusting to new routines and a new environment to learn which increases anxiety and decreases self-confidence. Also, most teachers were in the habit of providing three positive praise statements to every corrective statement given to a student. Your child is most likely missing those daily reassurances from their teachers.
Tips/Solutions:
Problem:Â My child gets started on something, but then doesnât finish.
Explanation: Task Completion: Your child is used to someone monitoring task completion often and that there was praise or a consequence for not completing a task. Now, those teachers are only checking on task completion once a week and arenât present to offer that praise or consequence.
Tips/Solutions: