Helping out a stressed child

Many parents feel powerless to help when their child is stressed
and overwhelmed about their schoolwork. It is not just senior
students who experience this level of stress, research indicates
that for some students this starts as early as Year 7.


If your child is experiencing stress and anxiety related to their
schoolwork, here are some strategies you can try.
FIND OUT MORE: Try and discover what it
is that is causing the most anxiety. Does your student feel anxious
about tests or assignments? Are they struggling to plan and manage
their workload? Are they finding a particular subject difficult? It
is very difficult to address the issue until you really uncover
what the issue is. If they do not want to discuss with mum and dad,
you may find asking a teacher who they like and respect to talk to
them may lead to a better outcome.LET THE SCHOOL
KNOW: Next talk to your child’s tutor or a teacher
that is responsible for your child’s year group. You can either ask
the school to investigate further and even take action to address
the issue, or you can ask them to keep it confidential as you are
just wanting to make them aware of the issue.DECIDE
STRATEGIES: Once the problem is clear, next step is
to decide what strategies to try (and you may need to try multiple
strategies over time). You may have some ideas of things your child
could try, you may find some ideas on the Study Skills Handbook
site, or you may need to talk to teachers to learn from their
expertise.DON’T GIVE UP: If a strategy
doesn’t work, then try something different. Different people
will have different suggestions so google or talk to lots of
teachers or other parents about the issue and see if they have
other ideas you could try.CONSIDER EXTRA
SUPPORT: Your child may need additional support. For
example from a school counsellor, or a psychologist or a tutor.
Make sure you are clear about the issue so you can find the right
person to provide the additional support your child needs.