WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – Heading back to school can come with a lot of anxiety for children and parents, and a local expert gave a few tips on how to cope with the pressure of the upcoming school year.
Sarah Pearce,a licensed clinical social worker at Thriveworks in Wilmington, gave some advice for parents and kids to follow when it comes to getting back into the classroom.
A new school year can mean a fresh start
“It’s such a busy time not just for kids, but for parents and for teachers. Everyone is stressed and I think the common thing we hear is, ‘We don’t have time to slow down and take deep breaths’ or ‘We don’t have time to really explore feelings,’ but the thing is if you don’t do it now you’re going to run into the fall out of not doing those healthy habits,” said Pearce.
Parents and caregivers should find the time to sit and talk with children about the upcoming school year. Adults should actively listen to the child’s concerns and try not to be dismissive of feelings by being overly positive. Adults should ask questions and learn more about where the concerns are coming from.
Pearce says it’s okay to reflect on the lessons learned from the previous school year, but don’t dwell on the negative events that happened in the past. She says every new school year is an opportunity for a fresh start.
Adults should also build relationships with school employees. Stronger relationships and communication can lead to better performance inside the classroom.
“Remember kids and teens both what we’re asking of them to do when going back to school. They’re going into a classroom that maybe they’ve seen once for an open house with a group of people they’ve maybe never met,” said Pearce, adding in that there are a lot of unknowns when it comes to a new school year.
Parents worried about sending children back to school
Sometimes it can be a scary thought to be away from your children for the first time or just in general. Pearce says it’s okay to voice your concerns to your child. It’s okay to let them know if you’re sad and that emotions are normal. Pearce says emotions should be normalized and parents should try to teach their children healthy coping mechanisms to deal with them.
Parents and caregivers can try to plan activities outside of school, that way the child and the adult can look forward to quality time together once class is over.
“I think all too often as adults we try to just pretend we are good and put on a clear face and the child doesn’t see us experience emotion and experience self-regulation. But anytime we can model, it’s normal to have feelings and I can cope with them too,” said Pearce. “It’s modeling emotional maturity for your children and teens,” she added.
Online safety
“Social media with teens in particular in middle school. It’s really important to pay attention to what’s going on in the screen and on the phone. Unfortunately, it’s a time where some people, so teens, adults whoever, they feel safe saying unkind things to each other so bullying is a real problem,” Pearce explained.
Pearce says parents should know what children are doing online. She says adults should teach kids the difference between real life and what they see online. She also says there should be an open line of communication, allowing children to have a safe adult to go if they need to talk to someone.
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