Mrs. Cindy Stafford
8th Grade Counselor

Mrs. Jeri Bellan
7th Grade Counselor

2007 LSU Honors High School Credit and more

www.youth.lsu.edu

Dear Parents,

We are delighted to have your children here with us at Fontainebleau Jr. Below are a few tips for you to help your 7th grader or 8th grader achieve at school.

“Excellence is not an act, but rather a habit” Aristotle

Our Best wishes for a successful school year!!!!

Counselors

Jeri Bellan (7th) and Cindy Stafford (8th)

Adapted from “How to Get Good Grades-In Ten Easy Steps” by Linda O’Brien, Woodburn Press, 2006

Be interested

Make sure that your child knows that his/her academic progress is important to you. Know as many details about the school’s calendar and procedures as possible-when do progress reports come out? report cards? when is open house? Participate…if it’s important to you it’s probably important to your child.

Discuss classes and set realistic goals

Set realistic goals according to your child’s abilities and help them talk through their plan to achieve this. Help them evaluate their progress every couple of weeks and re-evaluate the plan at the end of a grading period. Recognize your child’s efforts and improvement. Rewards can be effective in helping motivate a student, as well as logical consequences. (Taking away a positive activity sports, music lessons, scouting etc may prove counter productive.)

“Success is a state of mind. If you want success, start thinking of yourself as successful.” Anonymous

Encourage Involvement

Student’s who are involved in school-related activities enjoy school more and they have a greater academic success. Encourage your child to get involved.

“Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don’t recognize them.” Ann Landers

Be available to help

It’s your child’s responsibility to be organized, to get homework done, and prepare for tests, however, it is important for you to be available to help (don’t give more help that is wanted.)

Monitor Activities

Make sure your child is not spending too much time watching TV, playing computer games, or talking on the phone.

Important “don’ts”

Don’t nag about school or grades

Don’t allow your child to miss school unless he/she is truly ill.

Don’t criticize a teacher in front of a child

Don’t make your child’s failures or successes your own. Your child may see getting poor grades as a way to rebel.

Don’t have expectations that are unrealistic. If your child knows that your expectations cannot be met, he/she may not even try.

Work with the school

Know that the teachers, counselors, and principals are there to help your child get the best education possible. A health problem, death in the family, or divorce can affect your child’s attitude and/or performance in school. Call the school if you need to share significant events affecting your child. If you have an issue that relates to a specific teacher or class, call or e-mail the teacher.

“Successful people have learned to make themselves do the thing that has to be done when it has to be done, whether they like it or not.” Aldous Huxley

How can you help your kids deal with tough situations and make them
feel safe in times of crisis? Children are exposed to traumatic events like
Hurricane Katrina through TV, radio, newspapers, magazines, and even adult conversations that they overhear. The information can be scary to kids, and they often need help managing what they've seen or heard. When you start talking with your children, you help them handle their feelings and you start a recovery of your own.

http://family.samhsa.gov/talk/helpyourkids.aspx