Welcome Lansdowne Lions to the Counseling Corner!

Goal Setting: 

Setting goals can help your student become a more self-directed, responsible learner and can improve motivation and independence. Also, goals can help your child feel engaged in their academic career. 

When you have time to sit together, discuss with your child what they would like to accomplish to help them with their learning. Start with small goals such as, “I will complete my homework this week.” Then move to bigger goals such as, ``I will complete my homework all this month.” As a parent/guardian you can help your child stay on track and reach their goals!

How to Help Your Child Calm Down: 

Big emotions can feel difficult for children to control. Here are a few strategies you can use to help your child manage their emotions and calm down 

• Model Managing Difficult Feelings: Describe your own feelings to your child and model the coping skills you use to calm yourself (i.e. deep breathing or ranking the intensity of your emotions from 1-10). This will teach your child how to develop their own coping strategies and become more aware of their emotions. 

• Validating Your Child’s Feelings: By showing your child that you  are listening and attempting to understand them, you can help to de-escalate them and possibly prevent larger scale behaviors. It is important to remember that showing acceptance of their feelings is not the same as agreeing with them. 

• Set Clear Expectations: Outburst can be prevented by setting clear expectations and setting up consistent routines for your child to follow. While changes can be unavoidable, their effects can be minimized by warning your child about them in advance. 

• Provide Options: Giving your child an option when asking them to perform a task they are unenthused about may reduce the likelihood of an outburst. This may look like giving your child the choice of which task they would like to complete first or where they want to complete it. 

Adapted from Child Mindset Institute-for the article click here