School Start

Essential reading for any parent wanting to help their child develop the emotional skills necessary for school success!

Starting school can be an anxious time for both children and parents! Studies increasingly show that children who have good emotional skills are far better equipped to meet any challenges and develop resilience in the face of any setbacks. And it's parents and carers who are the key people in helping children to develop these strong emotional foundations.

By focusing on your child's emotional and social needs, School Start enables you to understand your child's brain development and how this impacts on their emotional intelligence. It also offers practical strategies for how you can help your child to: deal with anxiety; initiate new friendships; cope when things don't always go to plan; accept that people have different strengths and weaknesses and that they won't always be 'the best' (or 'the worst') at things; deal with teasing and bullying; and, develop resilience.

Guidance is also given to help you cope with your own reactions to your child starting school. It's important for new 'school parents' to be self-aware and in touch with their parenting values, as it's all too easy to draw on 'baggage' from your own school years when faced with problems your child might face.