Do you struggle to find a balance between spending time with your children versus focusing on your own activities?
Serious parental guilt can ensue if you feel you can’t spend as much one-to-one time with your children as you would like — playing with them, helping them with homework, encouraging them, listening to their worries and helping them reflect on how life is going.
BUT… did you know that it’s also important to teach your children how to play independently?
No one wants to be a nag, right?
Have you ever heard your children, friends or spouse impersonate you when you are nagging? (… And thought to yourself, “Oh my god, do I really sound like that?!”)
Nagging is actually a very ineffective way of getting someone to do something for you. It’s like a part of their brain switches off when they hear that tone.
It often makes our family members avoid us, tune us out (selective listening), become defensive and frustrated. It doesn’t make them want to do what we ask. They may do it eventually but they’ll be resentful about it. We are also teaching others that they can wait until the tenth request before actually having to do anything.
Here are seven steps to help break the nagging cycle in your home:
(This is the third and final post in this series. Click here for part 1 | Click here for part 2)
Here are some ideas to help your son or daughter stay on top of things and reduce stress levels during the VCE years.
Help your son or daughter come up with a daily and weekly schedule.
Try putting leisure and non-academic activities into the schedule first, such as:
Then, fit in study blocks (usually 45 minutes) around the activities.
Encourage them to take frequent short breaks away from their desk!
Short breaks should be about 5 minutes for every 40-50 minutes of study.
Breaks should be energising and can involve activities such as:
(This is the second post in a three part series. Click here for part 1)
It can be easy to tell yourself, “if my child is worried, they will tell me”, or, “if they need help with schoolwork, they will tell me”, but the ways teenagers communicate their feelings are not always so straightforward…
Sitting back and waiting for your teenage son or daughter to come to you could lead to you are waiting an awfully long time!
You are the adult and parent, so take the first step to show them you care.
Catch them at the right moment to have a chat or make a request. Timing is very important!
Some good times to open up are…
(This is the first post in a three part series.)
VCE* is the most stressful period of school that your child will undertake. Even the most capable student can feel overwhelmed from time-to-time.
(*The Victorian Certificate of Education covers the final two years of secondary school.)
What’s more, stress can not only compromise your child’s ability to achieve their full academic potential…but it can also take a toll on their health, their relationships with friends and family and their emotional wellbeing.
So what can you do about it?
Got any questions before you book? Click here to request a phone call and a psychologist will call you at a convenient time (prospective clients only). Please keep in mind we are often busy with clients but we do our best to respond to all enquiries within one business day. :-)
(*As of 24th July, 2019.)