3 Things to Do NOW to Make Next School Year Better for Your Kids
While the summer is heating up, the last thing you may want to do is think about next school year… but the reality is that it’s going to be here before we know it, and there are things we can be proactive about to make the next school year better for your kids.
#1: Have Some Honest Conversations About Next School Year
Before you start setting goals for next school year, take some time to connect and reflect together. Some helpful conversation-starting questions may be:
- What things do we want to continue from last school year, and where do we need to make a change?
- What are ways we can structure our time together to help you feel supported?
- Can you think of 3 things we can do to help you feel less stressed this school year?
When you’re having reflective conversations like this, don’t expect every answer to come naturally (especially if this is the first time you’ve had one like it). Don’t take their first answer, either! Take time to ask probing questions, think of alternatives, and reflect together on what you’d like to see next school year.
Starting from a place where you and your child are aligned on the goals you have for the year will make troubleshooting and implementing changes much easier when the time comes!
#2: Assess Cognitive Skills to Identify Issues Before They Start
Before you start a project, one of the first steps is gathering materials. Whether it’s building a house, making sourdough bread, putting together an Ikea bookshelf, or changing the oil in your car, you don’t start unless you have all the tools for the job.
Yet year after year, many families send kids back to school without filling their cognitive toolbox. Cognitive skills are the ways your brain processes information and the world around you. Whether it’s learning to read, memorizing history dates, solving complex mathematical equations, or applying new information in other contexts, everything you do relies on this network of skills.
When one or more cognitive skills are weak, kids will continue to struggle more than necessary to achieve the same level of mastery as their peers. If you have a child who…
- Struggles in foundational areas like reading or math despite in-school intervention
- Has difficulties across subject areas
- Takes longer than peers to complete tests or tasks
- Has trouble focusing or engaging in class (or when working independently)
- Struggles with problem-solving, application, or critical thinking…
It’s important to dig deeper and find out WHY.
Assessing cognitive skills before next school year will help you know what tools your child’s brain is stocked with ahead of time so you’re not surprised by any struggles (and it gives you time to build these skills if they’re lacking).
Learn more about the benefits of cognitive testing here >>
#3: Take Steps to Build Their Resilience
When kids dislike school or struggle with school, often poor resilience is one of the foundational reasons. Why is that?
Resilience is your ability to take stock of a difficult situation, tackle challenging things, and bounce back when things don’t go as planned. For kids with learning struggles especially, they get burned out by the constant cycle of struggle, never feeling like they’re as “good” as their peers, and it wears them down.
Read more: What the Brain Does When It’s Stressed >>
A lack of confidence impacts all areas of life—not just school. And resilience is a quality that’s important to teach in kids and teens of all ages. Fostering resilience can look like a lot of things, including:
- Making sure your child is engaging in areas they are skilled at. For many, this means organized sports or arts opportunities outside of the classroom.
- Times of connection. Do something daily to connect with your child and reinstate their value, whether or not they perform well in school (or other areas).
- Stress management training. Teach your kids strategies for managing stress and overcoming overwhelm when those times come.
- Increasing their capacity for stress and learning. Improving the way the brain is able to process the world and interact with it has far-reaching implications not only for overcoming learning challenges, but also for self-esteem, resilience, and overall confidence.
