Adolescence brings about many challenges, and doing well in school might be one of those challenges for your teen. Physical and mental changes might affect your teen's whole life, and with everyday pressures also playing a part, grades might suffer. As a parent, it's important that you understand the pressures and find ways to guide your teen toward putting forth his best effort and doing well in school. This might involve something as small as starting an honest conversation with your teen or something as complex as being directly involved with your teen's homework and organization skills.
Step 1
Sit down for a talk. At all costs, avoid judging or assigning blame. Instead, focus on asking questions. According to educational expert V. Michael Santoro, M. Ed., make it clear to your teen that you value his efforts and his hard work, rather than the actual grades themselves. He needs to know that you'll be proud if he's trying.
Step 2
Find out what's causing the problem. According to an excerpt from "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Parenting a Teenager" by Kate Kelly, reasons for poor grades can include anything from mild learning disabilities to emotional upset to peer pressure or influence. Overly-high expectations from parents can also result in teens doing poorly in school, often as an attempt to rebel against the parents.
Step 3
Help build your teen's confidence. Santoro recommends focusing on your teen's strengths first, so she knows you're able to recognize her successes. Once you've praised the positive, ask her what she thinks can be done so she achieves success in other areas as well. Consider making an appointment with your school's guidance counselor so your teen can discuss her concerns and get help in charting her own course for proceeding, which allows her to be proactive to the situation, rather than reactive, Santoro notes. Try to figure out if feelings of inadequacy are at play and how those can be worked out.
Step 4
Help your teen focus on a specific goal and spontaneously reward his success when the goal is achieved. Don't think of it as bribing. According to the educational site Scholastic.com, rewards work better when they're unexpected and spontaneous as the result of a significant achievement. Promising a "prize" as a reward for getting better grades is not the same and might actually dim your efforts.
