Student stress

Radio Commentary

        A study shows that stress from school hits students hard at all ages and grade levels. 
In the study, students named more than 300 stress factors they felt at school. The number one stress was schoolwork itself.  

Contrary to myth, most students work hard at school and want to do well. Having difficulty can cause a great deal of stress.

More girls than boys cited social stresses, and peer pressure about their appearance. More boys than girls said they felt anxious about discipline. This dovetails with studies that show more boys are disciplined than girls.
Also listed were stresses ranging from riding the bus to preparing for a career. 
Clearly, no student can lead a stress-free life — plus, that would be terrible preparation for the real world. But we know that an overload of stress can cause physical and emotional problems that compound the situation.

For this reason, it is a good idea to reduce some of the stress in children’s lives. Methods include using alternative forms of discipline and increasing cooperative activities. 

It’s also critical to understand that each child is different, and matures at a different rate. 

This knowledge prevents us from creating one-size-fits-all situations where deviations from the norm create an additional form of undue stress.

Managing anger

Radio Commentary

Everybody gets angry, but you can help your child take responsibility for heading off angry outbursts.

Start by asking your child what situations seem to make him angry. He might say:

When I lose a game. 

When someone says something untrue about me. 

When my little brother uses my things. 

When I want to do something that I can’t.

Then brainstorm alternatives with your child about how to diffuse the emotions.
Ask, for example, “If you’re losing a game and you know that can make you angry, what might you do instead?”
One technique is to help think of a few phrases your child can repeat over and over until the anger subsides, such as, “It’s only a game,” or “I can stay cool about this.” 
You should also help your child practice things he can say to others to get out of a situation where he’s likely to get angry. 

He might say, for example, “I have to go home now,” or “I’m too mad to talk about this right now.” 

Other suggestions to help a child control anger might include listening to music, running around the yard to wear off some energy, or writing a story about the situation. 

With parents’ help, most children can learn to take responsibility for managing their anger before it gets out of hand. 

Scholarship- Making a Difference One Young Person at a Time

Monique Limon

Top five ways to connect

Radio Commentary

Here are the top five ways for parents to connect with their child’s teacher:

Early in the year, make arrangements to meet the teacher. This is an ideal time to share information about your child so that the teacher can make the best possible connection.

Take a “no fault” approach when dealing with difficult issues at school. Blaming teachers or classmates only strains relationships. 

Join forces with teachers to reach a common goal: helping your child overcome difficulties and find success.

Drop your child’s teacher a note any time. Do you have a question about homework? Is your child upset about something that happened at home? 

Were you really impressed by a school project? Pass it along.

Call your child’s teacher for a specific reason — or for no reason at all. Teachers appreciate hearing from you. A good tip: ask teachers beforehand for the best times to call.

Bring a list of questions to meetings with teachers. Prepared questions help the meeting stay focused and keep you on the issues that matter.  

These are great ways to support your children in school. 

A nation of education

Radio Commentary

The percentage of the United States population that has completed high school and college has increased over the past generation.

            As late as 1970, only 55 percent of the population age 25 years and older had completed four or more years of high school.

            That total has jumped from 55 percent to nearly 80 percent.

            The percentage of 25-year-olds who have completed four years of college has increased from 11 percent to 23 percent.

            These are findings of the National Center for Education Statistics.

            Many people find it surprising to learn that, at any given time, nearly one-third of Americans are involved with our education system.

Think about that.

            The United States has a population of nearly 314 million.

            Of those residents, more than 77 million students are enrolled in American schools and colleges.

            Many residents also work in the education system. An additional six million Americans are employed as elementary and secondary school teachers and as college faculty.

            Another five million work as professional, administrative, or support staff of educational institutions.

Clearly, education is a central portion of who we are as Americans, and nearly a third of us cherish it enough to participate in it or work for it. It’s an impressive statistic.

How parents can help

Radio Commentary

        Sparking a child’s curiosity can be key to lifelong learning. Parents can help.
Make up trivia games that you can all play regularly, even when you’re on the run. Give children a chance to experiment around the house with measuring, cooking, repairing broken items, and other activities that require finding and using information.
Also, be sure to know what’s going on in school. Attend school events. Your presence will show your children that you’re interested in their school life and value it.

Ask children for detailed descriptions of what they’re studying at school.

You should also help children establish a sense of ethics. Have the courage to say NO when children’s interests are not acceptable.

As children get older, continue to uphold firm, clear limits. But gradually give them more chances to make choices and live with the consequences.

It is easier to set these standards in first and second grades than in preteen years. But there are also ways to encourage preteens to stick to standards of behavior.

Teach children of all ages to say “thank you” and write thank-you letters when appropriate. Tell them stories of justice. Teach them that there is a right and a wrong way to do things.

In these areas, parents are the most important teachers of all.

Manners

Radio Commentary

         Many people believe that modern-day children do not have good manners and often display rude behavior.
That may be a bad “rap” for the younger generation as a whole. Clearly, there are examples at both extremes of the spectrum when it comes to displaying good manners for every age group.
The fact remains that good manners must be taught; they do not come naturally.
In fact, bad manners are usually natural, selfish impulses that children are sometimes allowed to demonstrate.
Curbing poor manners and developing good ones requires parents to place real limits on their children. A caring adult may need to have a tug of war with a child who has developed the habit of a me-first attitude.
It involves taking away ordinary privileges, and saying “no” a lot. Sometimes that’s harder for the parent than for the child. 
Remember that good manners are not just about rules. It’s also about showing children how to be gracious and respectful.
Simple words like “please,” “thank you,” “I’m sorry,” and “excuse me,” go a long way as well.

Teaching manners may start out with a negative approach of restrictions and consequences. But the outcome is always a form of civility, respect, and love.

Reaching kids

Radio Commentary

            There is a quote I really like that says: “Either we teach our children, or we abandon the future to chance and nonsense.”

            You don’t have to tell that to parents or educators. Both groups are well aware of the responsibilities they shoulder.

            A Gallup Poll on Americans’ attitudes toward public schools reconfirmed a perception that has held steady for more than two decades: the public gives only average marks to the nation’s public schools, but predominantly A’s or B’s to the schools their own children attend.

            We hear reports about the demise of public education, but the schools parents see for their own children — for whom they are the world’s strongest advocates — they rate above average or excellent. Think about that.

            Educators recognize that challenges remain, and work remains, until all students reach their potential and until the achievement gap is truly closed.

The one irrefutable truth we have learned from educational research over the years is that every child learns differently. Some must read information to “get” it. Others must hear it, and others need hands-on approaches.

Still others do much better in small groups, while some require the one-to-one attention of a teacher or tutor. Most need a mix of techniques.

            The trick for educators lies in identifying the needs for each student and providing strategies to meet those various needs. Not an easy task.

Reform efforts continue. I’ve always considered teachers our unsung heroes and heroines for the work they do, every day, to reach and teach our children. They deserve our support and appreciation.