Parents, any suggestions/ tips on how to make kids excel in basic reading, writing

[estee06]

and arithmetics skills? As mosts parents struggle to find ways to help kids cope with keeping up with increasing schoolwork these days while finding enough time to play, pursue other hobbies, or enjoy simple pleasures of childhood, they would still like to know how to secure their children's future.

[J. C]

Teach your child to pay attention. I've been in many classrooms. The kids that struggle are the ones that simply don't pay attention. Those that do pay attention usually are able to keep up on their learning and excel. I've heard many that would say that this child has a learning disability of some sort. In the classroom I'd observe that same child and find that the kid doesn't pay much attention, is constantly causing mischief, gets hardly any work done, and so on. No wonder this child is struggling.
I'm not saying this is the case all the time; There are those that truly have a learning disability but, from observing classrooms and kids' behaviors, the ones that struggle are the ones that don't pay attention. Plain and simple.

[doc]

Read! Read! Read! Read to them, in front of them, have them read to you, in front of you, in the car, while waiting for dinner, and then when you have tried everything - READ!

BTW - all that you describe is possible IF you don't allow much TV or video games. Have your children OUTSIDE - my grandmother and I use to count stars, talk, we read on a quilt in the backyard. I went to her house as often as possible and I don't EVER remember having the TV on.