The first week back to school is always a mixed bag of emotions, whether children are feeling excited to see friends again or nervous to be back at school.
This year, the monumental gap as a result of school closures means that kids might be feeling even more anxious than usual.
Here, the UK’s leading online tutoring platform MyTutor provides tips in partnership with Alicia Eaton – author and specialist in children’s emotional wellbeing – to help parents ease the nerves of their children and teens:
Be the one in-the-know
What does your child’s new routine look like? Will children be able to mix together at lunchtimes and break times? Will some of them be separated from their friends? The more you know, the easier it will be for you to explain things to your child more confidently. Your child will be looking to you as the authority figure and you’ll need to convey that you know what’s going on and all is well. Uncertainty produces anxiety – and anxiety interferes with concentration.
Help them rationalise
Talking about our feelings helps us to feel close to the people around us and to feel better. It can be harder for children to do this as they haven’t always developed the vocabulary to describe how it feels to be sad, scared or excited. Try to expand general conversations into talk about emotions and how we feel, as this will reduce the emotional overwhelm which often results in angry outbursts or defiance. A stroppy teenager might simply be struggling to cope with the emotional intensity of being so happy to see friends again.
Tackle social anxiety head-on
Even the most confident of teenagers will find the first week back at school a bit daunting. Children with social anxiety will usually want to avoid stressful situations and many will do whatever they can to ensure they arrive at school at the last possible minute. However, it’s much better to encourage them to do the opposite – arrive early and be one of the first. It’s much easier to strike up a conversation and feel a part of things when there are only a small number of people there. Turning up even 5 minutes later when conversations are in full flow and initial instructions from the teacher have been given will add to that feeling of being left out.
Talk to each other
Talking about our feelings helps us to feel close to the people around us and to feel better. It can be harder for children to do this as they haven’t always developed the vocabulary to describe how it feels to be sad, scared or excited. Try to expand general conversations into talk about emotions and how we feel, as this will reduce the emotional overwhelm which often results in angry outbursts or defiance. A stroppy teenager might simply be struggling to cope with the emotional intensity of being so happy to see friends again.
Expect some drama
Stepping back outside into the big, wide world will create feelings of sensory overload for all of us. The world will seem a noisier, busier place than it did before the pandemic started and children are particularly susceptible to this as their senses are still developing. They already experience the world in a much more vibrant way – sounds are louder and smells stronger. Don’t be surprised by a few emotional outbursts or episodes of crying to begin with, as it will take a bit of time to adjust back.