The genuine apprehension about the start of a new school year affects not only students but also their parents.
As the new school year approaches, many parents and children experience a wave of anxiety. This anxiety stems from various concerns, including academic performance, emotional readiness, financial pressures, and school safety. This article offers strategies to manage back-to-school anxiety for both parents and children.
For Children
Normalize Anxiety
Acknowledge children's nervous feelings as a natural response to new challenges rather than dismissing them. This approach reduces the feeling of being overwhelmed and helps children feel understood.
Promote Physical Health
Encourage balanced nutrition, adequate sleep, and regular exercise to strengthen resilience to stress.
Create Predictable Routines
Establishing routines provides children with a sense of control and security, improving emotional readiness.
Attend School Orientation Events
Familiarize children with the school environment to ease nervousness about academics and social settings.
Validate Children’s Feelings
Avoid excessive reassurance that could minimize their emotions or reinforce fears.
Facilitate Problem-Solving Skills
Build resilience and confidence in older children by teaching them problem-solving skills for handling academic and social challenges independently.
For Parents
Acknowledge Parental Anxiety
Recognize that parental anxiety is real and significant, driven by multitasking school logistics, managing schedules, and concerns around children's academic and emotional needs.
Manage Your Own Stress
To prevent projection of anxiety onto children, it's crucial to manage your own stress levels. Parents’ calm and balanced approaches help reduce children's anxiety.
Set Realistic Expectations
Avoid added pressure by setting realistic expectations about academic performance and social adjustments.
Organize Finances Carefully
Plan for school supplies, clothing, extracurricular costs, and balance household budgets to reduce financial stress.
Prioritize and Delegate
Reduce the burden of multitasking and alleviate exhaustion caused by juggling roles by prioritizing tasks and delegating where possible.
Use Coping Techniques
Manage emotional toll and prevent burnout during the demanding school year by practicing mindfulness, seeking social support, and maintaining self-care routines.
In conclusion, effective management combines empathy and validation for children’s emotional experiences, structured habits to build readiness, parental self-care, financial planning, and realistic expectations to ease both children’s and parents’ back-to-school anxieties.
During this busy season, it's important to remember that adjusting routines, reducing commitments, taking a break from social media, and talking openly with kids about shared stress can help ease pressure. Leaning on partners, friends, or professional support can offer relief.
The mounting pressure around academic performance and overall well-being is disrupting the traditional, steady school routine. These concerns manifest in various forms, such as unease about separation from their children. National conversations have sharpened the spotlight on threats such as bullying and school violence, adding weight to the decisions families face.
Jennifer Allen, a retired professional chef and long-time writer, offers recipes and travels the world. Her work can be found at Cook What You Love.
[1] American Psychological Association. (2019). Stress in America: The State of Our Nation. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/2019/report
[2] National Education Association. (2020). Back-to-School Survival Guide for Parents. Retrieved from https://www.nea.org/tools/back-school-survival-guide-for-parents
[3] National Association of School Psychologists. (2018). Helping Children Cope with Anxiety. Retrieved from https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/helping-children-cope-with-anxiety
[4] Understood. (2021). Helping Children with Learning and Attention Issues Succeed in School. Retrieved from https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/tips-strategies/school-success/helping-children-with-learning-and-attention-issues-succeed-in-school
[5] Child Mind Institute. (2021). Back to School Anxiety. Retrieved from https://childmind.org/article/back-to-school-anxiety/
- The chef and writer, Jennifer Allen, shares seasonal recipes and travels globally, which can be found at Cook What You Love.
- Educational institutions should engage in workplace-wellness programs that prioritize the mental health of their staff, as their well-being is crucial for the health-and-wellness of students.
- To brush up on personal-growth techniques and career-development strategies, parents might consider enrolling in education-and-self-development courses to better cope with the demands of the new school year.
- School administrators could introduce fitness-and-exercise routines during lunch breaks, promoting the overall well-being of students and helping them manage back-to-school anxiety.
- By offering not only academic instructions but also life skills education, the school curriculum could instill resilience and emotional intelligence in children, helping them handle anxiety and other challenges more effectively.
- Parents should also be mindful of their children's sick days, as repeat absences could indicate physical or mental health problems that require attention and support.
- In the face of increasing pressure and concerns related to school safety, it is vital for parents to engage in open conversations with their children about their feelings and experiences, fostering a sense of trust.
- In addition to managing back-to-school anxiety, parents can also seek professional support or join parenting groups to discuss shared challenges and learn new strategies for navigating the school year.
