every night. The boy would finish his assignments and bring them to
his father for checkout. That was the good news. The bad news was
that if the work was not absolutely perfect, Dad would tear it up and
make his son start over!
So, if your child’s work is for the most part neat, correct, and
complete—but not perfect—consider the PNP procedure. Don’t tell
the child that his schoolwork is superb, because it’s not. Just say that
the work is good and praise some specific parts of what he has done.
Perfectionist parents who squirm at this suggestion need to stay in
touch with the emotional realities of childhood and the value of
holding their children to realistic expectations.
Charting for Homework
A daily charting system can be a godsend in improving academic
work and decreasing homework hostilities. This is especially true
when charting is combined with the Rough Checkout and Positive-
Negative-Positive methods, and when spur-of-the-moment homework
requests are avoided.
Quik TipThe first thing out of your mouth when your child shows you her homework must
be something positive—even if it’s just that she brought her work to you. And
remember: 8:00 p.m. is no time to expect academic perfection!Since older kids are usually the ones who have trouble with
homework, a five-point scale can be used on the chart instead of