Help your child succeed in school with these ideas

American children spend 180 days in school--other nations spend about 240 days and their school day is longer. What is it that you can do to help your child compete in an expanding world?

Here are our best tips.

1. Encourage reading. This is the single most important thing you can do for success in education. Start early age-wise; read to your baby as part of a day's routine. A few minutes at a time, several times a day is all that's needed.

• Have reading materials on hand
• Set aside quiet time
• Visit your local library

Beware of reading problems: check vision, use reading assessment programs; monitor learning disability.

2. Communicate.

• Talk and listen about school and school success
• Hearing a lot of talk encourages listening
• Shopping? Talk about prices, how to choose veggies and foods
• Let them find items in the store
• Teach them the steps in recipes

3. Share repairs

• Let a child hand you tools
• Ask for step-by-step suggestions
• Watch TV? Talk about the shows and assess what they are getting from it.
• When child talk, stop what you're doing and listen.

4. Study

• Provide a special place for homework (with good light and have all the basics available such as pens, pencils, proper paper, dictionaries, etc.
• Remove distractions

5. Monitor and limit television and video game-playing.

6. Encourage questions