Today, Monday 17 April, children across the state are heading back to school for the second term of the year. Can hear many parents cheering and celebrating today.
This means however that the traffic is back to gridlock and the 40kph speed limits around all schools will be back on. So, remember to slow it down and watch out for kids.
While the holidays may have been time together as a family, it is now time to get back into the routine of school and work life.
Time to make sure children have a daily, predictable routine, with regular times for healthy meals, naps, and night sleep at home. Having a rested body and knowing what to expect at home helps children cope. It also helps adults get more out of a day.
Last term may not have been the best, so it is important to keep looking forward and not back. If it was grade concerns that can be a tricky one. The best question parents can ask when faced with a grade, whether high or low, is: How are you going to use this experience to be better next time? This helps in looking forward and focusing on making the best of the new term.
In the high-pressure, high-stakes game of school, it can be difficult to know which parenting strategies really promote learning. A successful experience in school is not only about report cards. Ideally children will learn how to learn, retain information, think independently, ask questions and develop an increasing sense of competence.
Focus on the process, not the product, encourage kids to self-advocate, keep a long-term perspective, and love the child you have, not the child you wish you had.
All kids are different and learn different ways and at different levels but what they all are is special and the future of this great country.