It is back to school time already. It is never too early to think about what your child is going to need for the up and coming school year. The most important tool for school that you can get for your child is a student planner. Sometimes the school gives each student one. They are wonderful and they have many benefits. If your school does not provide them you can buy a planner or you can even make one.
The student planners or student agendas as they are sometimes called that teachers hand out usually have a school handbook attached to them. This way it does not get lost and the student and the parents can go back and look at it. The handbook has a lot of important information in it. It includes everything from the dress code to school closures. It also covers behavior and discipline issues. The handbook usually will have contact numbers and information on holidays.
The student planner can have pockets in them to hold things like homework and permission slips. There also can be messages from the teacher. There is usually a check-off sheet for the parent to initial or sign to verify that the child has done their homework. Planners are a great way for parents to see for themselves what their child is doing in school. It also helps the parent because if they know what is going on in their child’s classes it makes it easier to help with homework.
Student planners also usually contain a monthly calendar that will tell the child as well as the parents when their will be holidays or early school closings. There will be activities listed and important dates like homework projects and tests that will soon be coming up. This calendar is important because it lets everyone know what is coming up so there are no surprises.
If the student planner has a daily calendar, this is even better. This is really a useful tool. The child can write down their homework assignments and write down the highlights coming up for the next day. This way the child can be prepared for the next day’s activities. In this area a child can write down thing like upcoming exams and spelling words that they need to work on. They will also be able to see what pages or chapters that need to be read in their textbooks.
Teachers like student planners and agendas as well. It helps their students stay focused and prepared. Teachers can also see if the student is doing their homework. Most teachers give rewards to get their students to use the planners. Things like extra credit are handed out. Teachers also know that students benefit from using the planners. It makes the child’s life less stressful because they know exactly what they have to do and when it is going to happen. For example, if a big project is due such as a research project, that student can break the project into several pieces. This way homework and projects are not so overwhelming.
The benefits to using student planners are many. For example, planners help students learn how to be organized. They also teach students how to manage their time. It also reinforces the idea that writing things down gets things done. So it makes students more productive. Plus if a child has to write homework assignments down they are more likely to remember to do it. This applies to adults as well. It also teaches them to prioritize their assignments. This way they do the assignments that are due now while still working on assignments that are coming up soon. Student planners help children learn skills that will benefit them throughout their entire life. The planners also help keep good communication going between the parents and the student as well as the teacher.
There are several types of planners available. If you have to get one for your child, be sure to get one that is user friendly. This way your child will be more apt to use it. The best way to make sure the planner is used is to let the child make it theirs. They have planners for every school level. There are ones for elementary school, middle school, and high school. It is recommended that planners be used just as soon a child is able to write well enough to use it. They will use the skills that they learn from using their planner for the rest of their lives.
About the Author
Pete Wise is a White-Hat SEO Jedi working with Action Agendas, whom create custom planners for students to use at school. Go to their website to see pricing and options for your student planner needs!
