As we officially begin another year of school (on paper), I am looking for a way to make things more interesting (and yes, even fun) for our son. Here are a few things I have come up with:

1. A reward system for doing lessons willingly and promptly. We have a chart on which we list what is expected of him. In return, when he gets X amount of checks for cooperation, he gets to pick a reward ( a visit to the arcade, a movie rental, play at the park, etc. ). For rewards that may be a little more costly, he has to earn more checkmarks. This system also extends to doing his chores, and manners, hygiene, etc.

2. Making sure he has some new items for school, such as those cool erasers he likes, maybe a journal for entering his info about the robot battles he is planning (lol).

3. A trip to the library to look for books about his interests (as well as some to go with subjects we are covering).

4. Planning a "back to school" event. Something to celebrate the official beginning of school. We haven't actually done this yet, but I am looking at some options. I know some people plan a day or two for this. A day at the beach, zoo, amusement park. Like a "mini vacation". This would be a great time to talk to him about what we hope to accomplish this year, with his help. Some families plan this event after public school has started back. This is a way to emphasize the fact that their schedule does not have to "jive" with ps schedules.

5. Although we aren't in the position of having to shop for school clothes, I do like to shop the back to school sales. We choose some items which suit his taste and my purse (lol).

These things we do aren't going to make him like school. After all, he is only seven. His favorite subject is playing! But by finding ways to make some aspects of school more fun and rewarding, I hope to motivate him to develop a better attitude toward "lesson time". I think a large part of being successful in this endeavor is giving him the opportunity to make choices of his own. If that means letting him get the cool pencils or notebooks for his paper trail, or the book about robots he wants to read, or even a far out shirt to go with his favorite shorts, it is ok. Just as long as he doesn't get the one with the yucky bugs on it!