Preparing kids emotionally for school

August 05, 2019

Starting or going back to school is often a difficult moment for many children. Some cry, some develop sudden ailments, while others get depressed from thinking about it. If you are a parent whose child is having back to school jitters, here are a few things you can do to prepare your child emotionally.

Arrange ways to bring your child together with other kids

In addition to talking to your child, it may be a good idea to find a way of bringing him/her together with other kids in the same school. For example, throw a back to school party and invite other kids, their parents, and some teachers if possible.

A back to school party will allow your child to reunite with friends and feel better about going to school. You may also get a few helpful tips from fellow parents on how to deal with back to school jitters too.

Go over school material with them

Sometimes kids fear school because they don't feel adequate enough to meet school requirements. To deal with the feelings of inadequacy, it's advisable that you go over school material with your child before he/she report officially for school.

You can find informative school curriculum resources online or even go to school and ask for some course material. Many schools offer summer packets to continue practicing learned skills during the summer. Once you do a couple of exercises that refresh your child in reading and writing, he/she will feel less anxious about tackling the new lessons in school.

Teach your child stress releasing exercises

Many children are inevitably stressed by the new environment or new grade when school opens. Therefore, as parents, we need to teach them stress releasing exercises.

Some stress-relieving exercises for kids are:

Repeating empowering affirmations
Practicing meditation
Deep breathing exercises
Squeezing a stress-relieving ball
Performing short bursts of aerobic exercises
Listening to music

These are all things that your child can do for a few minutes to calm their anxiety. Stress-relieving exercises will prepare your child emotionally to cope with any difficult situations and make school time easy for them.

Get the proper information about the school

As a parent, you also need to get the appropriate information about the school and prepare your child accordingly. An effective way to do this is to meet a teacher before school and get familiar with things. It also helps to bring your child along so he/she can bond a bit with the teachers and know what to expect from them. Take advantage of school opening night and take your children with you to meet the teachers and get familiar with the new school year.

Get them back to bedtime schedules and healthy diets

One thing that can stress kids is the lack of sleep and an unhealthy diet. You may need to get your child on a healthy sleep schedule before school opens and start feeding him/her the right foods cutting off junk altogether.

Start the new routine at least 2 or 3 weeks before school starts, and you will not have a problem when the kids actually have to go back to school.

Give them socializing tips

When your child goes to school, he/she will have to meet old friends and new friends. They may also have to deal with new teachers. It's a good idea to give them some socializing tips so they can interact well with those around them.

Some socializing tips you can teach your child include;

How to express in words their emotions and thoughts
How to listen and maintain eye contact during conversations
How to interact with others in groups through role-playing exercises
How to deal with conflict especially when they are having problems with bullies

It sounds hard but teaching your child socializing skills will reduce the anxiety about going back to school or dealing with new situations in the future. Try it and see how much of a difference it makes in your kid's life.

School is important for our children. Helping them to deal with the anxiety arising from attending school means they can enjoy learning. Let's make it a priority.