Five Ways To Help Students Who Want to Quit KUMON

By Anna Seacat

KUMON | Lexington, KY | (859) 970-0004

Parents who have committed their families to the KUMON journey have made the tactical decision to make academic excellence a priority in their lives.  They understand that their unwavering commitment to the KUMON program means that their children will excel in classrooms, earn high test scores, and be able to apply mastered skills in math and reading to complex problems.  In short, these parents know that KUMON’s unique methodology will maximize their child’s academic potential.

So, what should parents, who believe in the KUMON methodology, do when their child doesn’t want to do their KUMON homework, wants to stop KUMON all together, or states, “I hate Kumon!”  Not to worry.  To answer this question, I interviewed Sudha Chopra, an expert in the KUMON program, who is also a KUMON mom and owner of a KUMON center in Lexington, KY.  Below are a few of Chopra’s recommendations for parents, who may have children struggling with their commitment to KUMON.

Communicate Goals to Your Child

KUMON | Lexington, KY

Chopra suggested that every KUMON student will naturally hit a stage in their learning journey, where their daily KUMON exercises will begin to feel more like a challenge.  She explained that because the starting point in KUMON for all children is the level where they have mastered all concepts prior to that point, the KUMON exercises will feel easy at first.  However, eventually KUMON students will reach at or above grade level work.  When students are working “above grade-level” they are being challenged, which is OK and absolutely necessary. 

For instance, when an athlete pushes herself to improve her skills and abilities, she will have to challenge her body during daily practice.  The practice itself is not always fun; in fact, sometimes it can be slightly on the painful side.  However, she knows that the daily practice is the only way she will fulfill her goals of being a competitor within her sport.    

As with excellence in athletic sports, academic excellence also requires daily practice.  Daily practice may not necessarily be what a child is going to describe as “fun,” especially when they are comparing it to watching cartoons or playing a game.  It is at this point in the learning journey that you will need to explain to your student why your family has committed to the KUMON program.  It may help to use analogies.  For instance, it’s easy to explain, “If you don’t practice in the batting cages, you won’t be ready for the game on Saturday.”  Try to apply this analogy to KUMON exercises: “Your KUMON homework will help you be ready for second grade.  If you do your KUMON homework every day in first grade, you’ll be able to relax and enjoy school – you will feel comfortable.”  Obviously, this same analogy can be adjusted for high school students: “If you keep up with your KUMON homework now, you will have a competitive edge over your peers in college.”

Evaluate Your Child’s Study Habits

Early in the morning is the best time for KUMON

Sudha Chopra, owner of KUMON in Lexington, KY, recommended that students will feel less negativity towards KUMON exercises if you create the time and space in the morning before school to complete them.  Families are often rushed in the evening with dinner, school homework, and practice.  Moreover, children, teens, and their parents are mentally and physically exhausted in the evenings.  In other words, this is not the time of day to focus on academic excellence.  Therefore, Chopra suggests that after an early and healthy breakfast, encourage your child to finish their KUMON homework before the rush of the day gets started.

Join Your Child’s Learning Journey

When my daughters started their KUMON journey, so did I.  In fact, so that I could experience what my oldest daughter was experiencing at KUMON, I took second grade math right alongside her.  Participating in the KUMON program benefitted my family in two ways.  First, and foremost, my daughters benefited from seeing me doing daily KUMON homework – I wasn’t making them do anything I wasn’t willing to do myself.  As embarrassing as it was at first, I even sat in the KUMON classroom twice a week alongside the other KUMON students.  By sitting alongside KUMON kids (many who were working on higher levels than I was), I was exemplifying that learning is a life-long journey, which doesn’t end once you become an adult.  Watch Sudha Chopra in the video below explain how parents taking KUMON can help children.

However, my daughters and their fellow KUMON students watching me retake second grade math was not only benefitting them.   After all, I had the opportunity to relearn primary grade math the right way…the KUMON way.  Math was always a source of frustration and anxiety for me in school.  But, completing levels in KUMON math made me feel sharp and confident.  I didn’t realize how foggy my basic math skills had become until I began to master them, as all KUMON students do.  Mastery of grade-level concepts in math is rarely accomplished by students in traditional schools.  So, many students, myself included, move on to the next grade level without completely mastering the concepts in the previous grade. 

Therefore, if your child is asking why they have to do their KUMON homework or asking to quit KUMON, make a deal with them.  Tell them, if they stay in KUMON and try their best, you will do it alongside them.  Believe me, this is a powerful move that they will respect.  Furthermore, you will have more empathy for the challenge that they face on a daily basis.

Communicate With Your KUMON Instructor

Do you feel confident or anxious when faced with math? | KUMON

Additionally, KUMON expert, Sudha Chopra, insisted that parents should share your child’s struggles with their KUMON instructor.  Believe it or not, when I reached complex fractions in KUMON, I began to hate KUMON.  I felt anxious during every KUMON assignment and dreaded going to the KUMON classroom.  My face would get hot; I would sweat; it was a terrible feeling to be overwhelmed with third/ fourth grade level math.  I was embarrassed, but I emailed the KUMON instructor and shared my frustration.  She explained that I may need to refresh my long division skills.  She was right. 

Don’t get me wrong; most adults can perform long division.  But, I would make a hefty wager that most adults can’t perform long division with the same speed and accuracy as a KUMON student.  Remember, speed plus accuracy equals mastery.  And, mastery, according to the KUMON methodology, is required to move to the next level confidently. 

Therefore, if your child is struggling in KUMON or asking to stop taking the KUMON program, it is imperative that you communicate this with your KUMON instructor.  Although a simple refresh in a previous level helped with my KUMON struggles, there are a number of other reasons why students can become frustrated with their daily KUMON work. Fortunately, KUMON has been measuring, tracking, and perfecting its method for so long that it has been able to successfully recognize and predict these challenges. Consequently, when your student is struggling it is critical to communicate with the KUMON instructor, who will be able to offer effective ways to overcome the challenge and move forward.

Lean on Other KUMON Parents

Rely on other KUMON families | Tricia Martino, KUMON

KUMON is the oldest after-school reading and math program.  For more than fifty years, parents just like you have set high expectations for their children’s academic potential and maximized that potential with the KUMON methodology.  Also just like you, all KUMON parents have children that at some point don’t want to do their KUMON homework and may even want to quit KUMON.  Yet, we forge on.  I would highly recommend that you form a local network of KUMON parents, who rely on each other for advice and empathy.  With Sudha Chopra’s help, I have only offered five suggestions in this post, but I’m sure other KUMON parents could easily add to this list.

Summary

Hearing your child say that he or she “hates” KUMON can be especially painful for parents, who have committed such a great deal of time, energy, and money towards maximizing his or her academic potential.  However, keep in mind that quitting daily academic practice, lowering your expectations, or giving up on goals is not what will benefit your child in the long run.  Instead, try implementing one or all of the above mentioned suggestions.  And, if all else fails, shoot us a message in the space above – we will help you and your child get back on their successful KUMON journey.