14 yr refusing to do homework

What kind of suggestions do you have to encourage a 14 yr old to complete homework??

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

It can be quite easy for children in their early teens to 'fly under the radar', so to speak, when it comes to homework. First of all, be sure you have a method for knowing the work assignments. Some schools have the assignments available on school-based web sites, some schools employ telephone lines reserved for such information, etc. Sometimes, if a child is not faithful to writing down the assignments, a sign-off sheet is utilized. Whatever the method for monitoring the assignments, so that you are in a position to follow up, it's crucial that children utilize a planning book or agenda book to record assignments in a systematic way. Then, be sure to establish a homework routine (e.g., a 30-min. break after school, followed by a routine time to commence homework, and an understanding that free time and use of TV, video games, internet, etc. is not available until homework is completed). Part of the system should be your checking each assignment so the child sees that he/she is accountable.  Too often, simply because children are in their teens, parents pull back from the kind of monitoring that early teens really need, even though they tend to resist it.