Once your child starts going to school, you may think that you're finished worrying about her developmental milestones. However, school-aged children are still developing, though at a more subtle pace than when they were babies. You can help your child develop by being aware of the developmental milestones generally appropriate for her age and tuning activities and family life to enhance her development. In addition, you can use your child's network to ensure that you have good perspective on how she is developing and find areas upon which you should focus.
Step 1
Talk to your child's teacher. The teacher is not only an eyewitness to your child's everyday development, she is a tremendous resource for developmental activities appropriate to your child's age. In addition, she can flag any areas that need attention as she has experience with a wide range of developmental issues based on working with children your child's age.
Step 2
Focus on effort, not results. Children thrive with input that is specific, insightful and praises what the child put into the project, not the resulting grade or mark. Children who are praised without substance, notes a 2007 "New York Times article, Are Kids Getting Too Much Praise? These children have trouble managing failure and have an overinflated sense of their own ability, making it difficult to manage through subjects at which they are less naturally capable.
Step 3
Provide age-appropriate activities. Children can learn responsibility and gain a sense of accomplishment by helping to keep the house and their rooms in order. Chores provide opportunities for them to accomplish tasks and learn some basic skills as well. For example, a 6-year-old can make her own bed, clear her plate and keep her room tidy, though it isn't appropriate to ask her to be in charge of younger brothers or sisters for brief errands.
Step 4
Guide your kids into good study habits. Academic development is critical to success in school. You can help your kids develop by asking their teacher the goal of homework: is it to support material already learned or introduce new topics? This information helps guide the level of support you need to provide for homework. Set a specific location and time for homework appropriate for your child--if you have an active child, let her play before requiring her to sit down and study. Check homework and, depending on your school or teacher's policy, either point out errors or help your child make corrections.
Step 5
Foster your child's social skills. Set up age-appropriate play dates, especially if your child is shy, to help her develop bonds of friendship. Identify activities that your child enjoys and sign her up for them with a friend to help foster a deeper friendship. Model good friend behavior by having your friends over often when she is present so she can see how friends interact.
