• Teach your child how to set goals. First, help your child choose one goal that is both challenging and attainable. Examples might be, "I will complete my history reading every night," or "I will receive a grade of 90 on my spelling test."
  
• Next, write the goal. Post it where your child can see it. A visual reminder will help keep your child motivated.
  
• Now talk about strategies for accomplishing the goal. These should be concrete steps that help your child move purposefully toward the goal. For example, set aside 15 minutes of study time every day; make flash cards of the difficult words; ask family members to give practice tests.
  
• Check progress. If your child completes each step, be sure to celebrate the effort. If your child encounters problems, give help to get back on track.
  
• Finally, evaluate your child's progress. Was the goal reached? Why or why not? What was learned from success? If the goal was not reached, what was learned from the experience?
  
• Praise your child's effort in trying to reach the goal, and teach your child that even though he/she didn't succeed as hoped, she's positive progress was still made.
  
• Then help your child set another achievable goal. Every time your child reaches a goal, self-esteem is being built to try to reach another one.
  

(Taken from the "Parent Resource Binder: The Essential Link", published by the Newfoundland and Labrador Home and School Federation, p. 34).

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