With less than a month left until the opening of schools, not only children and young people, but also parents can get into a rush and excitement, and they may need guidance at this point. In this article, I will address the needs of both children and parents.
The child's grade, level (primary school, high school, university), age and cognitive skills; It directly affects the meaning of "school" for the child. Because; Each child's needs and feelings differ when starting school.
In children who will start kindergarten or kindergarten; In other words, "separation anxiety" is a common situation in children who will be separated from their mother for such a long time for the first time. Sigmund Freud, one of the first to express attachment and separation anxiety, defined this anxiety as "human's first experience of anxiety" (1994). If a clearer definition is to be made, separation anxiety in children is the anxiety and fear of abandonment that arises in the child when the caregiver is not near the child. The reason for the emergence of this fear can be somewhat clarified by Piaget's theory of cognitive development. According to the theory, children aged 0-6 can only interpret their environment from their own point of view and have difficulty in understanding and empathizing the reasons behind the behavior of others. This situation is much more intense in the 0-2 age range, and a 2-year-old baby may worry that his mother is no longer there or will not come back when he cannot see his mother for a long time. After the age of 2, it is quite normal for children to have separation anxiety, although they can better understand the behavior and thoughts of others. They may show signs such as irritability and introversion. Parents should approach their children with understanding and patience, and make them feel that they understand their concerns and are there for them.
The primary school period is an intense learning period for children. There is now an introduction to simple mathematics and scientific education, and depending on the child's perception, this can be very exciting or very stressful. A new environment of friends and new teachers will increase this excitement or stress exponentially. For this very reason, the child's relationship with his friends, the bond of love he feels for teachers. � is important. If parents want to make this period easier for both themselves and their children, they should ask how the child's day was when they come from school every day, chat with them and guide them where necessary. In addition, before the school starts, the school should be presented as a pleasant and enjoyable environment so that a negative prejudice does not occur in the child. The more a child likes school, the better his or her adaptation will be. Again, if we interpret according to Piaget's Cognitive Development Theory, since abstract thinking skills begin in this period; Adolescents begin to develop their own worldviews, lifestyles and beliefs during this period. It is also referred to as the period in which an individual's identity is formed. It is such a painful period that Peter Blos; He compared adolescence with the loss of man's position at the center of the universe, and suggested that adolescence is a more intense period as a result (1979). While adolescents struggle with these problems, parents who have an adolescent child also stated that their social life decreases and they experience more anxiety for their children (Aybak & İpek, 2021). Although challenging, maintaining healthy communication between parents and their high school children is critical. Families experiencing difficulties during this period should not hesitate to seek expert support. Thus, communication problems are solved and both the child and the parents can start to feel better.
The fulfillment of all these suggestions depends on the psychological well-being of the parent. A parent who feels exhausted, inadequate and worthless will have a hard time showing an empathetic and patient approach to their child. For this reason, first of all, the parent should go through their own psychological counseling process and learn to meet their own emotional needs.
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