Many teens experience a time when keeping up with school work is difficult. Some adolescents are able to get through this time with minimal assistance from their parents or teachers. However, when the difficulties last longer than a single grading period or are linked to a long-term pattern of poor school performance, parents and teachers may need…

This ERIC digest addresses problems associated with children's excessive viewing of television programs and commercials and provides suggestions to help parents guide their children's television viewing. Children who watch television 3 to 5 hours a day have little time for other activities such as play, reading, and talking with others. Excessive…

This ERIC digest addresses problems associated with children's excessive viewing of television programs and commercials and provides suggestions to help parents guide their children's television viewing. Children who watch television 3 to 5 hours a day have little time for other activities such as play, reading, and talking with others. Excessive…

Parents can play an important role in helping their children succeed in school. This ERIC Digest presents the Big Six Skills problem-solving method as an effective approach for parents. The Big Six Skills apply to any problem or activity that requires a solution or result based on information. The Big Six can help parents effectively deal with the…

In a question-and-answer format, this single sheet outlines the rights of parents in the special education process, as provided by Public Law 94-142, including the right to a free appropriate public education for the child, to request a re-evaluation, to have the child tested in the child's primary language, and to participate in the development…

This digest explores the concept of mentoring with gifted students and offers guidelines on its implementation. The literature on mentoring is reviewed, noting the maturing effect of mentor relationships and the particular value of mentors for disadvantaged students and for females. Among six guidelines offered are: decide what (not whom) the…

Many parents want to know how important the quality of care is to children's social, emotional, and academic development. This digest synthesizes some major recent research on child care quality. First, the digest explains what features contribute to quality of care. The digest also explains the differences between studies of how quality is…

This digest is intended to help parents and teachers understand and cope with underachievement in gifted students. Underachievement is defined and its various components (e.g., content and situation specificity and ties to self-concept development) are explained. Strategies to reverse patterns of underachievement are classified as either…

The digest explores the rights as well as the responsibilities of parents of handicapped children in the special education process. Rights include a free appropriate public education, notification regarding evaluation or change in placement, informed consent, independent evaluation, review of all records, participation in the Individualized…

This digest highlights one tool that teachers use--standardized tests--from the parent's viewpoint. The discussion covers basic features of testing and suggests questions that a parent might ask his or her child's teacher concerning such tests. Standardized tests are usually objective tests sold by commercial publishers and designed to provide a…

This digest presents information for parents regarding science and math homework. The benefits of homework are discussed and guidelines for gauging the amount of time spent on homework are given. Suggestions for family policies and procedures for helping children complete homework assignments are also presented. (WRM)

This digest presents an overview of ways that parents can encourage their child's learning in science. National and state standards for science knowledge and skills are discussed. The importance of parental guidance and encouragement in all subjects--science in particular--is also discussed. Suggestions are made for setting a good example, helping…

Noting that our ability to incorporate the cultural strengths and the distinctive ways that families, specifically fathers, contribute to educational accomplishments of preschool children is severely constrained by major gaps and inadequacy in the research literature, this Digest explores what is known about the role of fathers in young children's…

Noting that parents are their children's first and most important teachers, this digest provides suggestions and recommends resources to help parents become involved in their children's literacy development. The digest discusses visiting the public library; reading aloud and modeling reading; playing with children; listening to children read;…

Each year, many teachers face the problem of where to place children who do not fit into the rest of the class. Retention is an option that is frequently considered for these children. Children considered for retention often have poor academic skills, are small in stature or the youngest in the grade, have moved or been absent frequently, do…