The transition from a relaxed family holiday to the rigours of school and work can be challenging for children and parents. You’ve had a chance to slow down, unwind and spend some quality time together with a focus on fun. Now it’s back to busy schedules, deadlines and working hard to achieve your best.
Here are some tips to help your child prepare, so they’re more likely to enjoy a happy and confident start to the school year.
For the last couple of generations, parents and educators have been encouraged to recognise and reward achievement in children. Positive reinforcement was seen as the way to motivate learning, and at the time that meant celebrating what each child was good at. Some children were good at maths, while others showed ability in writing, arts or sport and so on. It was also widely accepted that each child has a particular level of intelligence and the important thing was achieving to their perceived potential.
You may have heard people talking about the benefits of being mindful. It’s something that western cultures picked up from Buddhist traditions decades ago. Mindfulness is not a religion however; it is simply a beneficial technique or way of behaving that Buddhist followers use. A lot of scientific research has been done on the effects of mindfulness in adults and in the last decade or so this has increasingly turned to mindfulness in children.
Every child has the potential for greatness. However, there’s no particular success or happiness gene, or a “one-fits-all” formula that does wonders. Being happy and successful means different things to different kids, but one thing that they all must learn is how to face struggles, failures and challenges, since they are an inevitable part of life.
The question is, what do extracurricular activities mean and why are they important?
Here’s a little secret: extracurricular activities are simply any activity you do outside of your school work. Easy enough, right?
Well okay, that’s great, but why are extracurricular activities important?
Isn’t getting great grades in school good enough? And if you do participate in other activities, why does it matter? Doesn’t everyone do at least one activity that has nothing to do with school?
