He also brings home his school papers and about 25% to 30% will be wrong. The incorrect answers are usually ones that he will get correct when I ask him to do it over.

He tells me that it is not important that he gets an 'A' all the time, and I try to stress that what is important is that he does his best. Am I expecting too much from him?

Answer: I think your expectations are appropriate as he should always try to do his best work. I would not recommend that you expect him to get a particular school grade, like all A's and B's, but he should certainly show the level of work that he is capable of doing.

I wonder, if perhaps he is not being challenged by his schoolwork and thus finds it so boring that he is rushing through it, losing focus and making careless errors. I think it would be wise to talk with the classroom teacher at the start of the year about finding ways to ensure that the work is challenging and engaging for him. Maybe instead of writing a sentence with each spelling word, he could combine two words into each sentence. Perhaps by encouraging some more critical thinking, he will become more engaged and make fewer careless errors.

Finally, I think it is great to check homework for completeness, but perhaps you need to allow your grandson to find his own errors. Tell him that when reviewing his paper you see three mistakes and let him take the paper back to locate and correct them. If he can't, allow him to take it into school that way, so the teacher is aware of the work he is doing at home. It is important that the teacher see a true independent product in homework to assess the student's progress.

Allison Gardenswartz, is the owner and director of The Learning Garden, a San Diego tutoring center specializing in gifted and remedial learning and test preparation studies. An educator for over 15 years, Allison is an expert in identifying and enhancing the learning abilities of school-age children. Allison has a teaching credential and has taught for several years in the public school system in Atlanta, Georgia. She has three children: Jacob, 11, Sofia, 7 and newly adopted Ryan, who is 2!

Advice from our experts is not a substitute for medical or other professional advice and services from a qualified health-care provider familiar with your unique situation. We recommend consulting a qualified professional if you have concerns about your child's medical or emotional condition.

August 2007