If you feel like you are too old to cast your mind back to your school days, it takes one look at a stressed-out, anxiety-ridden teenager to bring it all back. The stress you would feel before exams, the fear of getting a bad grade and the pressure to perform from your parents or your teachers or simply yourself. Literally, nothing has changed and kids today are feeling those same things that you felt – your kids too. So if you see that they need some additional encouragement and help, here’s how to help them cope with everything being thrown their way:
Relieve the pressure and expectations
For a lot of kids, getting a bad grade isn’t nearly as scary as the idea of telling their parents that they got a bad grade. The pressure that kids feel to perform well for their parents is immense, but we all know that grades aren’t the most important things and that not every child can be great in all subjects. If it is important to you as a parent for your child to have good grades, you need to take a look inwards. If it’s because you want them to get into a good school, later on, that’s a good sentiment, but does it align with your child’s wishes? After all, it’s their life, and if they want to pursue something other than academia and don’t value grades as much, you are going to have a lot of conflicts. Make sure you let your child know that you love them unconditionally and that you will help them and support them in their dreams and aspirations, whether it’s in academia or something else entirely.
Help them succeed in school
Regardless of any pressure and expectations from either side, if your child wants to succeed in school but is having trouble with understanding the subject or doing good on tests, it’s up to you to give them the tools they need to succeed. If they are usually getting good grades but are struggling with a specific subject, consider getting them online e-tutoring with someone they can connect with and who can give them the extra explanations they need. If they have performance anxiety and can’t do well on tests in spite of knowing all the right answers, talk to the school psychologist and the teacher to see if there are any techniques they could be used to make it easier.
Make sure school isn’t the only thing on their mind
Yes, grades are important, but if they are the only thing your child can think about or talk about, then they’re making things worse. School is the biggest part of kids’ lives. They spend eight hours there and then come home to do more homework and study. It’s no wonder that they are stressed and feel overwhelmed. Make sure that your child has other activities that can help them take their mind off school and just feel like a kid. Whether it’s a sport they play, a hobby, hanging out with friends or just quality time with the family with no talks of school, allowing them that time to have for themselves to take their mind off school will help lower their stress levels.
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Address any issues that are preventing them from learning
School should be a safe, welcoming space for kids to come and learn and grow, but unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Their whole lives play out in school, and there are good and bad things all around. If your child is bullied or involved in some drama or anything similar, it could negatively impact their grades, because they might not be able to focus on studying and learning in the place meant for learning. Check-in with your child and make sure that there aren’t things that are impacting their ability to learn in school in a negative way and find the best way to deal with them.