Three three three.

That is what we talked about a couple of weeks ago and I discussed here.

We went to Curriculum Night the other night (Meet the Teacher). Josh (who is in grade 4) has a pretty strict teacher (which I like, because his teachers the past two years have not been great). She said the biggest problem she sees so far in the whole class is that no one knows how to “study”.

I told her I was not surprised. No teachers have taught my kids how to study!

But, I’m not one to think that the teachers need to be teaching everything. There’s just too much to teach, and too many kids to teach. So, I think it’s my job as a parent to ensure my kids have the skills they need for their future.

So, that is why we are learning study skills in our home.

As I said, we talked about three’s here: reviewing things three times before bed and then heading off to sleep.

The other three that we have been talking about at home is “Three nights to study”.

Somehow my kids think that their brains are capable of absorbing lots of info in a short period of time. One night, one hour, and one review is enough.

But it’s not. Our brain is only capable of absorbing small chunks of info at a time. Sort of how the body absorbs water. We are better off sipping lots of water during the day to stay hydrated than by chugging gallons at a time and then running to the bathroom because our body can’t absorb it all.

We need to study small chunks, then let our brain absorb, then study some more. If we divide our work over 3 days (minimum), we are more likely to retain the info.

• Review things three times. Review things a minimum of three nights!