Help Your Teen Transition to High School

This is the time of year when parenting publications are full of articles about how to transition kids to preschool or kindergarten. But for high school? Not so much. Yet the transition to high school is just as dramatic and anxiety provoking as when kids enter school for the first time. Their bodies are bigger, but they may be just as anxious and uncertain. For one thing, they are often going from being the oldest members of a school community to being the youngest. They don’t know their way around the building. They don’t know the rules and expectations of the teachers or understand the social hierarchy that has already been established by their peers. The amount of homework is likely to increase and the standards for making top grades may be higher. Their self-esteem is fragile while they struggle with their idea of what it takes to be both successful and cool. Their bodies are changing. Hormonal shifts influence their moods and ability to cope. Acne appears. Some kids grow a shoe size a year. Even as their bodies take on adult characteristics, their minds have a long way to go. The frontal lobe, the part of the brain that helps us plan, prioritize, be organized, foresee consequences and manage change, won’t be fully developed until their early 20s. And let’s not forget that social media makes privacy illusive. An additional stress is what is in the news every day: The possibility of a school shootings, racial violence, sexual harassment, abuse, and bullying are...
Source: World of Psychology - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Tags: Bullying Children and Teens Motivation and Inspiration Parenting Self-Esteem Students Success & Achievement Source Type: blogs