Is Your Child Getting the "Just-Right" Challenge at School?

It often can be difficult in the classroom to make sure that each child is given the "just-right" work. Teachers often tend to aim towards the middle of the class, which often results in children receiving work that is too difficult or too easy for them. The child may lose motivation if the work is too challenging, or not challenging enough. Finding the "just-right" work for the student will promote and support his or her intrinsic motivation. If work assigned is a bit challenging fort the student, perhaps the teacher should extrinsically motivate the student in support of completing the assignment and encouraging the student to work towards his or her fullest potential.

Ways to tell if the work is too easy:
Does the student call the work easy?
Does they finish their homework quickly, with little effort?
Are the books the child reads for pleasure more difficult than the books assigned at school?
Does the student fall apart when difficult work is given to them?

Ways to tell if the work is too hard:
Clues to telling if work it too hard for a student are often subtle.
Procrastination
Mood
Incomplete homework
Promising to work, but does not
Saying: "I don't know how to do it..."


If students respond yes to one or two of the questions above the child's work may be too easy, and the teacher may need to discuss with the child their observations. If the work is too easy for the child they may be bored and the teacher should challenge the student.

Source: Stipek,D.Ph.D., & Seal,K., (2001) Motivated Minds: Raising Children to Love
Learning. New York: Henry Holt and Company, LLC.