back to school

Two-Week Check-In (Mary’s Version)

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

It’s been two weeks since my son officially became a second grader and so far, things are off to a good start.  Thank goodness.

Last year was a bit of a mess. The first two months of his first-grade year were tumultuous, with frequent reprimands and constant negative feedback from the teacher. He started to loathe going to school, feeling like he was a bad kid and couldn’t do anything right. And then she abruptly quit, leaving his class to have a substitute teacher for the next three months. Turns out there were more kids in the same boat. Fortunately, the school was able to find an amazing educator who brought back his love of learning and school in the second half of the academic year.

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A Bundle of Nerves: Kids and School Anxiety

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

If you saw Inside Out 2 over the summer, then you know that Anxiety is the main antagonist but not necessarily the villain. The film does a great job explaining this complex emotion and why it has a notable presence in our kids today. Being former gifted kids, we’ve definitely felt academic anxiety in high school; but is this really occurring for our elementary kids?

Fears and worry are typical for kids as they grow and experience the world, especially when it comes to school. A 2023 survey reported that 86% of school-aged children worry, mostly on a regular basis (once a week or more), with majority of their concerns (64%) being school-related.

Although the term anxiety has become a catch-all for any emotion related to apprehension or unease, it’s helpful to know the variations and their differences:

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There’s No “I” in Team: The Parent-Teacher Relationship

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

When my son was three years old, his teachers expressed concerns about his behavior in class. He wasn’t following directions, had a tough time staying seated during circle time, and was distracting his classmates. With all of the other kids in the class, they were having a difficult time dealing with my son and unsure how to handle him. End story.
What? That’s it? That’s all you have to say?

With this news, a rush of anxiety came flooding in.
OMG, they think he’s a bad kid.
Does he have ADHD?
Am I a bad parent?

I know that other parents have these kinds of talks with their kid’s teachers, doctors, counselors; and more times than not, that is the end of the conversation. But it doesn’t have to be.

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Coffee Chat: Week 2 Check In

| Patti Webb

So many First Day of School pics….

Our kids have been in school almost two full weeks now. For context, both Mary’s son and my twins are in their second year of elementary school. And even though we got most of the first-time student anxieties out last year, there is still plenty to go around for year two.

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Like Clockwork: Circadian Rhythm

| Mary Stoffel, MOT, OTR/L

Things to do before the school year starts:

  • Buy school supplies
  • Buy school clothes
  • Meet new teacher(s)
  • Getting kiddo back to a regular bedtime (Yeah, about that…)

It’s not easy getting your kid back into routine after summer vacation, especially when sunset is well past 8pm. There’s a reason for that. It’s the same reason we feel energized, tired, or hungry throughout the day. It’s our circadian rhythm.

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