Do you have a child who rushes through their schoolwork?  Here’s what I say to mine when they have a habit of rushing and being sloppy: “Take as much time as you need on your Journal today, but when you finish we will be cleaning out the garage.” 

Plan a less fun activity to follow the schoolwork, if the child rushes through it. 

If Minecraft, TV, or snack time comes after they finish schoolwork, they will rush. 

Work with human nature. 

If you have a child who is slow, you may need to do the opposite.

I’ve had great success in using rewards to motivate my kids to do excellent work in their journals. Anyone else?

If they are in a funk or a sloppy season I might tell them that they will get a prize at the end of the week if they do 30 perfect pages in their core journal. Or they might get a chance to get a $15 gift card for Amazon when they finish a Core Journal, if it’s beautiful. I’ve done that 2 or 3 times over the years.

For example we might have a movie night and that child picks the movie, maybe they get to pick out the ice cream flavor, get a new book of their choice, a special time with me, and I’ve even given cash rewards or extra game time.

I have found that these motivation tools can get a child into the habit of doing better work.

Some kids just need extra motivation, especially Followers and Explorers.