How can I motivate my teenage son to do better in school??

Question

My son is a sophomore in high school and doesnt seem to take school very seriously. He just found out that he cannot play football this year because of last years grades. I really want him to be successful in school and football. He is smart and VERY athletic. It is not that he cannot do it, he is just choosing not to. I am trying not to put alot of pressure on him but as the new school year approaches, I want to help him anyway that I can to do well in school and to go on to bigger and better things in his life. Any ideas without pushing him further into the "slump"?? Help me out teenagers, let me know what you think.

Answer 1

You could go two ways.

1.Positive: Offer money or other reward for good grades.

2. Negative: Ground or take away privileges him until his grades come up.

Answer 2

Tell him that if he does not do good in school now, he will seriously regret it later when he will be driving a crappy car, with a crappy job and a sad life while he sees some very sucessful person driving a mercedes and a stock portfolio ten times higher than his

If he doesnt understand this, take away all his pleasures (tv, computer, sports, whatever he likes) and tell him it's his life he's wasting down the drain, not yours.

Answer 3

I am far from being a teenager anymore myself, but I will share with you one thing (of many) that my mom did: One summer, she made me take a job delivering phone books. Let me tell you, this is a hard, crap job and it pays almost nothing. When it was over, she told me, "This is the kind of job you have to take when you don't try hard in school. Put in some effort, and you can pick your job." Your son already has to deal with the immediate consequences of losing the privilege of football. Confronting him with the reality of the lifelong consequences of sloughing off school should reinforce its importance and help motivate him. Good luck.

Answer 4

reward-punishment system: give him something like money for good grades but take away his car/ipod/cell phone/going-out privileges, or something like that, for bad grades. Or get him a tutor, who could make him work. It's not like that the tutor would help him, but it would make him put the time into it. Or make him put aside a time to study and stuff...

I'm not sure if this is good or not but if I bring home bad grades, my parents just rant and rant at me about how I'm going to be a failure in life; it's effective, but I'm not sure it's good, psychologically, so don't do it.

Answer 5

I am the mother of three teenagers,and I wish that I knew the answer to this one my self..... I have one that just does not care what he does in school.he is not a trouble maker,he goes to school with no problem,but just does not care about grades.So, if you find the answer let me know.

Answer 6

make his life hard, give him hard labor chores or the worst jobs and let him know he needs to work hard on his education or this is all he's going to be doing the rest of his life.
also find a career he is really interested in and cares about, set up the goal that needs to be reached and let him know to get to that point he needs to start today!

Answer 7

What i think you should do is give him a gift for getting a good grade, doing good on a test etc. I know that it sounds like bribbing but it always works.

Answer 8

take everything out of his bedroom except for his bed.
so what if he is in a slump. no activities until he does better in school. end of conversation. it isn't a democracy here. you are the parent. act like one.

Answer 9

Show him some Ghettos, explain the choices he makes determines his fate!

Answer 10

Just tell him that if he does good in school u will reward him with somne things......