Just like that, the June holidays have whizzed by in a blink! It’s time to get your child ready for a new school term and semester – usually a more hectic one with more difficult topics and more content to study for at the year-end exams.
To avoid having Semester 2 hit you and the little one in the face without warning, it’s a good idea to be prepared. Here’s how you can help your primary school child restart their engines and minimise the post-holiday blues.
1. Finish up any holiday homework
You don’t want to be playing catch-up as soon as you start the new term. No matter how much fun your child has been having during the June holidays, you shouldn’t leave all the homework until the last minute!
Younger children may forget what homework they had or they don’t know how to plan their time to finish their work on time. Depending on your child, you may need to get involved with checking their homework list, asking fellow parents or your child’s teacher, and ensuring that all that needs to be done is completed and packed into their school bags for the new term.
2. Set goals for the new semester
Every new term in school is an opportunity for learning – whether that is studies-wise or in other ways. To encourage your child to be constantly growing and learning holistically, spend some time to set goals for them to achieve by the end of the year.
That goal could be in terms of academic results (e.g. improve from AL3 to AL2), or in terms of study habits (e.g. not handing in any late homework), or social development (e.g. make more friends this semester), or behaviour (e.g. don’t get into fights). You could also set some small rewards to encourage your child and affirm their efforts along the way!
If you and your child are focused on getting better grades this semester, a tutor can offer plenty of benefits! From more in-depth explanations to practice worksheets customised to their needs, Future Academy tutors are here to help you through the steps to reach your goals.
3. Plan towards key milestones
For the Primary 3 students they will be sitting for the GEP screening test in August, while Primary 6 students will be leading up to their PSLE starting with the oral exams in August. You may also be planning to get your child involved in math olympiad contests or preparing for DSA interviews and entrance tests.
These are some of the important milestones for primary school students happening in Semester 2, and it is important to prepare in advance so that your child does not feel overwhelmed with all the high-stakes activities going on.
For any academic help related to these primary school milestones, you can count on our Future Academy tutors to help your child gain confidence and master the skills needed to excel! Besides the usual tuition classes, we also cater to DSA and Math Olympiad training, as well as GEP preparation and GEP tuition classes.
You may also find our guides on DSA and GEP helpful:
How To Increase Your Chances Of Succeeding In DSA-Sec
Don’t Get Stumped By These Common DSA Interview Questions
How to Ace that GEP Selection Test (Sample Questions and Tips!)
4. Read up ahead of time
While the first half of the year is more about settling into a new class, the second half of the year is time to buckle down to learn! The second semester typically involves more difficult topics, and these will also be tested heavily at the year end exams.
If you are worried about your child being unable to follow in class, you may consider enrolling them in a tuition class that teaches ahead of time. This provides your child more repetition and reinforcement of the topics, helping them learn more easily. At Future Academy, we also structure our lessons to include plenty of review and revision, including topical revisions, timed practices, and more. By attending our tuition classes, your child’s study plan is more or less settled, and you can send them to their exams with less worry!
Conclusion
The second half of the year is here; don’t let it just fly by! These tips above will help you and your child go forth ready to tackle the challenges of the new semester and make the most of it.
If finding a new tutor for your child is on top of your to-do list for this semester, why not check out what we have to offer? From Primary School Math Tuition to PSLE English Tuition, we conduct small group classes online and onsite to help students hone their skills and knowledge to achieve better results. Contact us today to book your class!