Managing Back to School Worries in Children
The return to school can be understandably tricky to navigate for some children, let alone during a time of increased uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Whilst returning to school for some may seem an easy feat, for others, it may come with increased worry and may result in increased difficulty with managing your child’s emotions. However, there are strategies that can be helpful for managing back to school worry in children:
Talking and preparing your child for the return to school:
Talking to your child and preparing them for what the return to school may look like is a useful strategy for managing their back-to-school worries. Talking about the expectations of a school environment including the daily classroom structure, their new teacher and classmates, as well as any changes relevant to the pandemic (e.g., mask wearing of staff and some students, regular hand washing and sanitising, possible rules about playing in the yard) can be helpful to provide children with a realistic and clear understanding of what the return to school may look like.
Provide opportunities for your child to ask questions:
Children are often full of questions – they need to know the answer to everything! Providing time for your child to openly discuss their worries and ask questions about the return to school is a great way to allow them to directly discuss their specific worries. This will also allow you to understand how they are feeling and collaboratively discuss problem solving strategies or techniques about how to manage their worries.
Introducing relaxation strategies:
Relaxation strategies can be helpful when experiencing all emotions. Engaging in relaxation strategies are helpful in relaxing our bodies and mind and instilling a sense of calmness. Breathing exercises are a great introductory relaxation strategy for children as there are different techniques can be easily adapted to suit individual children.
Belly breathing: Have your child lay down on their back and place a favourite toy on their belly. Prompt them to breathe in through their nose and watch as their belly and toy rises. Then breathe out through their mouth slowly and watch as their toy and belly go back down.
Pizza breathing: Prompt your child to breathe in through their nose as if they’re smelling their favourite pizza (or another favourite food of their preference). As they exhale through their mouth, imagine they are cooling down the pizza with their breath.
Bubble breathing: This is a great breathing technique for children who enjoy multi-sensory learning. Using bubbles, prompt children to take a slow inhale through their nose before exhaling and blowing bubbles.
Written by Emma Trott (Registered Psychologist)
