Every parent has a dream that their child will succeed in school. And the question they may ask is, "How can I help my children succeed in getting a great education?" As a mother and grandmother, this has been a real concern for me. I found it very interesting to learn about research that Judith Ann Hillard did for her doctorate. Her research is based on a sampling of more than 1,800 students. I believe you will appreciate the following 10 tips Judith found, which are backed up by statistics and her research.

Make sure your children ate breakfast. Only 46% of all children eat breakfast regularly - 62% of a students do and 90% of D and F students skip breakfast. This is good advice for adults too! Eat dinner as a family. 95% of A students regularly eat dinner with their families, 55% of below average students rarely or never eat dinner with their families. Involve your children and clubs, sports, community service, or church activities. The development of social skills coupled by structured responsibility is crucial. Students who fail are three times more likely not to be involved in activities. Be a positive role model to your children. Students with low grades are three times more likely to have no positive role models. 53% of all students say their role model is one of their parents. Children mimic parents behavior - if parents treat each other with respect, children will behave that way. If parents are rude and snap at each other, their children will be rude. Listen to yourselves. Listen to your children. Take the hint. Establish and keep track of goals with your children. Students who have personal goals are three times more likely to attain good grades. 89% of a students have established goals while 70% of D and F students have no goals. Turn off the television. Of students who earn A's, only 2% report watching more than six hours of television per day. A large percentage of failing students watch six or more hours a day. The longer the tube is on the more grades suffer. Encourage part time jobs. Students who worked 10 to 20 hours per week get better grades than students who do not work. But moderation is the key. Full time working students have generally lower grades than either part time or non working students. Read. Create a quiet time for your kids to read. Read it out loud to each other. Read the newspaper and discuss what you read. When you have time, read. When you do not have time, read. 65% of A students read often or at least occasionally. 63% of A student's failing or near failing students seldom or never read. Encourage doing your best. 96% of A students say they always tried to do their best, while 76% of failing students put little or no effort into schoolwork. Hint: be aware of what homework is due and when. Keep track of your sons or daughters rates of tardiness or absenteeism. Hold your children responsible for their own actions. 63% of failing students blame others, mostly their teachers. If a blame game is on your household excuse list for failure, begin with the first tip and work your way down this list again. Good things are bound to happen. And parents may even put these tips on their refrigerator door. Two bonus tips: No smoking, no alcohol, no drugs. All three of these habitual, destructive activities have a dramatic direct relationship to poor student performance. See that your children get enough sleep. Students who sleep eight to nine hours a night get the best grades. More than nine hours or less than eight lower students achievement.

Thanks to the mother for these tips for this week's column and thanks for sharing and caring!

Warm Thoughts from the Little Home on the Prairie Over a Cup of Tea by Luetta G Werner

Published in the Marion Record November 18th, 1999.

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Till next time,

Trina