How do you help a child in need?

Question

My son is seventeen and is still in the 10th grade. He seems to not have any motivation to inprove his life.He goes to school everyday but will not turn in any homework.Yes, he is failing this year. The school has done everything in their power to help him regroup but he refuse to do the work. The school has asked him to just get his GED to stop him from just hanging around at school. Now he acts as though is sad because he had to drop out, but he was not doing anything anyway. HELP!!

Answer 1

My son is 17 and was his story sounded just like your son's.

I started homeschooling and everything changed. He is motivated and interested in learning. Some days I do have to prod a little, but he is still learning by leaps and bounds.

Children learn in different ways and not all children learn the way that teachers teach. Unfortunately, most teachers teach in one style and if students don't catch on, sorry about their luck.

With homeschooling, the child calls the shots. He or she can decide HOW he learns and not have to try to adjust to how the teacher teaches.

If you work, that is fine. He is old enough that you can give him weekly lesson plans and he can follow them. That is what I do. My son has learned that he can finish his entire week's of lessons by Wednesday or Thursday if he works hard. This leaves him time for extra fun or to work on next week's lessons (which is often what he does).

You may also check into virtual classrooms and see if your state has them. That can be a big help.

It may not be that he has no motivation for learning, he may just be not being taught in the way that he learns and he is frustrated.

Hope this helps. I know you are worried. Check out these support groups for many free and low cost resources and information:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HomeSchoolSupportandResources

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HomeschooledStudents/

Answer 2

Talking with him would be the biggest key. Find out what is really troubling him. Ask your school to perform a MFE. This is a test that would check to see if he has a learning disability. ADD is common and often undiagnosed. They should be able to check this and based on the results there are always ways to get him help. If he doesn't qualify under IDEA 2004's guidelines, there's always Section 504. I know you probably don't know about these laws, but the school will know about them and should be able to take them into consideration. If he's tested and doesn't get diagnosed, there is still probably a reason for his lack of interest.

There's something about school that he likes, or he wouldn't be sad to be without it. Besides the fact that home schooling is usually not a great option. Home schooling is wonderful, until you reach high school and the content becomes more focused. You son just won't be able to get the proper education without someone that has specialized in the field for each subject. Believe it or not, high school teachers should all have a degree in the subject they're teaching. That's 4 years of dedicated studies to the subject. It doesn't mean they can teach it, but at least they can answer questions your son might have.

If he's refusing to do the work, see if the teacher will make accommodations for him. They should be able to provide a different homework assignment for him that might be shorter, or even more engaging. Also, for fun, have your son take an online IQ test.
www.tickle.com offers these free of charge. Once you know his score you might have a better idea of whether he's just not being challenged or it is a learning disability.

Answer 3

One of the main reasons that kids don't do well in school is because they do not have anyone that has an interest in their school work. Parents need to stay involved in their children's education. Unfortunately, parents' involvement has been decreasing, and teachers have not picked up the slack. Parents need to ask about their child's school work, while schools should have a homeroom/advisory period in which a teacher has a group of up to 15 kids to talk to about their education or just hang out.
This will give kids some of the motivation they need in order to succeed and excel in their education.

Answer 4

I think that your son is in state of depression. What you can do is try to take his studies by appointing a Tutor or you can be his Tutor. Encourage him to study by reading out his text book and asking him to listen. Be caring for him and consult psychiatrist for further treatment. You take medicines for common cold why can't you take medicines/ advice for his mental illness?

Answer 5

first try to know what actually he wants to become
then try to arrange that what he wants
let him know the diffficulty in the work what he selected
this may help u 20 to 30 %

Answer 6

ask him what he want to do actually!!!!
what he want to become!!!
support him in wahtever he want.

Answer 7

sorry, i cant help u...

ammm...
PLEASE ANSWER!!! THANK U!
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