After months at home, some children may feel anxious about going to school or camp. Here’s how to smooth the transition.
Across the country many students are finally starting to learn in person again and summer camp slots are already filling up. After spending so many months sequestered at home, having these outlets can feel like a relief — but they can also seem daunting to young children who are reluctant to leave their parents and unsure of what to expect.
“What underlies anxiety is uncertainty,” said Mary Alvord, a psychologist in Maryland who specializes in treating children and adolescents with anxiety disorders and behavioral regulation problems. “And it has been uncertainty for over a year now, almost at every level.”
If you are concerned your child might have trouble adjusting to school or camp, experts recommend using these strategies to help them adapt.
Recognize and validate what your child is feeling.
Young children and some kids with special needs may not have the vocabulary to express how they feel. Look for behaviors that indicate they are feeling anxious, like crying, irritability, stomachaches or clinginess, Dr. Alvord said.
important for parents to acknowledge and validate these feelings. Dr. Alvord suggested a potential script: “I know it’s been hard, I know you like it at home. I know there’s a lot of things you don’t know and it may be scary.”
You can also mention various reasons that a child might feel upset, for example: “It may be hard because you’ve never been there before you don’t know the kids, you don’t know the teacher.”