We enter the last quarter of the course and the little ones begin to need a change of routine. It is now that a number of factors come together that can alter mood and motivation of schoolchildren. We explain the strategies that you can use at home to to get through the last months of school with energy and joy.

AN EXHAUSTING END TO THE ACADEMIC YEAR

On the one hand, the increase in the number of hours of sunshine and the good weather mean that children, just like adults, have more time to enjoy the sun. you want to be on the street or in the park. Extending afternoons away from home by playing can lead to changes in timetables of daily routines: bath, dinner and bedtime.

The kids will be more tired and will have less desire and less time for doing your homework. In addition, for many months now they have had a lot of homework and extracurricular obligations every day. And the repetition of routines is also tiring. Now is a good time for parents to offer them extra motivation to finish the course with all the energy and enthusiasm they need.

TIPS TO MOTIVATE THEM

Compare the school year with a long distance running. In the last few metres, you can feel the fatigue, most of the effort has already been made throughout the whole race/course, but it is now when you have to make the last effort to get the result you deserve. It is worth the effort of the spring final to reach the goal.

Compensate the moments of study for final exams, with moments of fun. Remember that even adults are not capable of sustaining active attention for more than 45 minutes. Studying for the final exams can be really hard. They will find it useful to make small breaks for half an hour, interspersed with study and some outdoor activity such as a bike ride, a ride on a skate or a few jogs with a friend/sibling in the park underneath the house. It will help them to to maintain concentration and consolidate learning.

It is also very useful to plan ahead the weeks. Teachers, aware of the fatigue accumulated over the course of the course, usually prepare special activities for these last months: excursions, cultural visits, etc... It is rewarding for them. At home, we can plan the obligations of the week, it will also help us to be able to find free time for share with them and do something together.

Motivate them with the reward that comes after the last effort: The holidays are here! More time for them, for new adventures with their friends and to enjoy time with the family. Maybe we'll take a trip, maybe we'll have a few weeks' holiday in the village, whatever the case, our little ones will have plenty of time to enjoy themselves. These appetising prospects will help them to get through the last hard times of the school year. And they will learn an important lesson: every effort has its reward.