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MediaWise® With Dr. Dave

The Seven Building Blocks for School Success

If you are a parent you probably already know that academic success starts at home. It is true that schools, supplies, teachers, and textbooks matter. If a child is not provided with the necessary tools and guidance at school, it will be difficult to become a good student. But if a child is not prepared to learn at home it is much more difficult.

Teachers and schools are very good at teaching children about specific subjects such as reading, math and science. However, when kids who do not know how to learn show up at school, teachers have a much more challenging task. And the kids that show up ready to learn usually go on to be successful students and in turn, successful adults.

"Ready to learn" is not a cut-and-dried concept. There is no magic recipe. Many different methods, values, and parenting styles can produce a child that will be successful in school. What all successful students have in common are what I call the Seven Building Blocks for School Success: sense of curiosity; imagination; ability to focus attention; ability to maintain attention; persistence; language; and inner speech.

There are many elements in a family's life that can keep kids from getting some or all of these building blocks. One of the most preventable-and most powerful-of these factors is an unhealthy media diet.

According to the Center for Media Education, television is the number one after-school activity for children ages six to 17. By mid-adolescence the average child has watched 15,000 hours of TV. This is more time than they have spent with teachers, friends or parents. It is no wonder then, that so many children have difficulty in school. The Seven Building Blocks require real human interaction and resourcefulness, exactly what TV and other media prevent and discourage.

Here's how to help your child have a healthy media diet and get the foundation for the Seven Building Blocks for School Success:

Sense of Curiosity - As you know, children are naturally curious. If a child spends the national average of 44 hours a week in front of an electronic screen (screen-time), there isn't enough time to be curious. Don't use screen-time as an indiscriminate babysitter. It's guaranteed to be less discriminating than you.

Imagination - Your child's imagination is a powerful learning tool. Overexposure to TV and many other electronic media stifle and restrict a child's imagination because they don't ask for participation. Make sure your child watches electronic screens in moderate amounts. Instead of screen-time, help your kids play games, make projects and read books.

Ability to Focus Attention - Children need to be able to pay attention so they can learn what is being taught. Many TV shows, video games and Internet sites require a very limited amount of attention from the viewer. Make sure you provide activities for your children that require them to pay attention. Reading, art, science and building projects, as well as outings, are all activities that reward your child for paying attention.

Ability to Maintain Attention - Too much fast-paced media trains children to always expect constant sensory stimulation. Their attention wanders when they don't have it. Avoid extremely fast-paced programs, movies and games, especially when children are very young.

Persistence - Sometimes it takes real persistence to complete a school assignment. TV, video games, and other media provide instant gratification. Too much media affects a child's ability to stick with an activity when things get frustrating.

Language - The ability to use spoken and written language well is essential to school success. Video games, movies and TV programs are not language-based. They are picture-based. Engage your children in conversation, read to them and expose them to the wonder of books from their earliest days.

Inner Speech - The ability to reflect and to have a private conversation with ourselves helps us think things through and control our impulses. Even though some of them are interactive, most electronic media do not engage critical thinking and therefore do not develop this skill. Encourage your kids to think before they act.

TV, video games and other media make it very easy for us to consume them. Making sure your child has the building blocks to be successful in school is not an easy task. But, when it comes to success in school, a healthy media diet is just as important as what your child eats. Do your kids a favor: turn off the electronic screens and make sure your home is MediaWise.