Back to School is a challenging time for kids. Getting back to a routine, reviewing material they may have temporarily forget from the last school year and of course fitting in socially are some of the many challenges kids face returning back to school.
Here are 5 tips to help your kids start this school year with their head up high and a big smile on their face.
1. Communication: Take some time and talk with your kids about returning back to school and what to expect. This can be a longer conversation and we all know children’s attention spans vary. Break up the talks into different subjects. Topics might include, making friends, seeing old friends you did not connect with all summer, getting used to the long days, homework, and asking for help.
2. Ask for Help: Someway or somehow many kids think asking for help is a sign of weakness and that could not be farther from the truth. No one creates success alone, you need a team. Look at sports teams, and even car racing pit crews. The more people you have on your team, the better chance of success. Encourage them to ask for help and ask questions when they are not sure of something. We recommend you practice this at home and don’t forget to reinforce effort with praise.
3. Don’t Compete for Your Friends: This is an important one. Often, kids gravitate toward others for specific reasons. Maybe they see one child getting a lot of attention and they think there must be something special about this person that I need to be with them. In larger social settings, competition for attention becomes a problem and kids will often lash out at each other even if they have been friends in the past. Look for the kids playing alone or in smaller groups. It doesn’t mean they aren’t “cool” or fun to hang out with. Maybe they don’t want or need the attention of others to feel special or secure, but often can be very loyal and very good companions.
4. Role Play: Practice role playing situations with your child. Will they enjoy it, probably not at first. Will it make them feel uncomfortable, most likely. Those are common feelings when it comes to situations we are not confident in. With practice, their outlook will change and their skills will improve.
5. There is a Significant Difference Between Talking About Something and Practicing it: When you have talks with your children, you have to practice how to ask questions or handle a situation. This reinforces the previous number 4. Often, Parents mistake talking about something for practicing it. Just because you “talk with your child” about asking questions in class, doesn’t mean they are confident and have the tools to ask questions. Being adults, we forget to put ourself in our child’s shoes and discount how challenging it is to be a young person. Most adults won’t think twice about asking a question. However, kids can often have trouble making decisions and live in the now since their frontal lobe doesn’t fully develop until they are 25 years of age. Just think about some of the conversations you have with your children, like “what do you want for dinner” and that should remind you a basic talk is not enough.
We hope these 5 tips help your child start the school year with an advantage.
Just a friendly reminder, our head coach, Brad Fantle has over 27 years working with children and parents, is a Child Development Specialist, ADHD Coach and is available for speaking engagements. If you are interested in him speaking, you can call or text 850-878-3900.