Self-Reflection
How can parents support self-reflection on homework?
Self-reflection on one’s own performance on tasks supports metacognition. Metacognition is the understanding and awareness of one’s own thought process. It’s essentially the skill of thinking about thinking. When a child explores their own thinking, they are better able to see their own mistakes and find better solutions.
How Did You Do That?
Ask your child to explain their thinking. Even if they complete an assignment without assistance, show interest and help them practice verbalizing their process. Encourage self-reflection about the whole process.
“What went well here?”
“What was your first step?”
“What strategy are you using?”
“Can you explain your thinking?”
“What might you do differently next time?”
Avoid Telling
When offering assistance, listen and prompt instead of telling direction or correcting. Non-intrusive help can improve self-reflection. Give your child space to think about their problems.
“What number do you think might work better here?”
“How are you sure that you have the right answer?”
“How do you know what you wrote for your answer is true?”
Provide and Model Structure
A structured environment that remains the same every day helps a child free up cognitive space to practice self-reflection.
Share any tools that you have found useful in your own life around planning and organizing. Share with your child how you understand and know your own thinking. How do you provide structure for your own thinking?
Share with you child how you stay organized at work, how you plan meals for the week, or how you are able to juggle the enormous childcare needs you might have over summer break!
These skills are all modeling metacognition for your child and help expose them to you modeling thinking about your thinking.
