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Children entering adolescence undergo all manner of changes; physically, mentally, and emotionally speaking. And watching kids go through this transformation can be difficult for many parents, especially considering that teens begin to turn to their peers for advice and support during this time, breaking away from their parents in an effort to establish an independent identity. But aside from the changes inherent to adolescence, parents will also have to cope with the fact that their young teens are entering high school, an environment that is not only demanding academically, but that also embodies hazards associated with peer pressure and the desire to fit in. So what can you expect when your teens enter high school? Here are a few things to prepare for.
For one thing you can expect the demands of the curriculum to increase. Whereas kids in elementary and middle school are often subjected to rote learning, those at the high school level must begin honing comprehension and reasoning skills. In short, they’ll be required to think. So whereas essays in younger years may have consisted of book reports or a letter detailing their summer vacation, they’ll now have to learn the five-paragraph essay structure and deliver work that shows more than the ability to regurgitate information. They’ll have to exhibit intuition, innovation, and independent thought. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. You’ll also notice that the amount of homework each night increases, as does the pressure to get good grades in order to have the best opportunities where college applications are concerned. In short, the academic load is about to get a lot heavier, which could cause extra stress for you and your teens.
Of course, the social aspect of high school cannot be ignored. If you though middle school was cliquey, just wait until your teens enter high school, a world where you can sink or swim based on the social groups you are a part of. The one nice thing about this time of life is that everyone is trying hard to discover who they are and what they like. The result is that people can change rapidly during this time, making for shifting groups of friends. In addition, there are all kinds of groups to choose from. So if your teens don’t fit in with the jock and cheerleader crowd, they may find fast friends in the drama or music departments. Thanks to a wide variety of extracurricular activities, your teens should find at least one group that they fit into.
Now, there are other things to consider, as well. For one thing, many high schools now require an array of shots before students may attend, so it could be time to find a local family nurse practitioner online that can deliver MMR, Tdap, or whatever other vaccines your teens need. In addition, you’ll have to deal with getting a driver’s license, preparing for SATs (and other standardized tests), and generally keeping your teens on the straight and narrow. This can be a hard road for parents. On the one hand, you want your teens to come into their own, to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence they’ll need to head out into the world on their own. But you also need to make sure that you rein them in enough that they actually reach graduation in one piece. Nobody said parenting was easy, and that’s never truer than when you’ve got teens in the house. But when you know what’s on the horizon you can make a plan to deal with potential problems and hopefully help your kids to get the most out of their time in high school.
My child is only 3 but given how fast that has gone, I figured I better read this because she will be a teenager before I know it! This is great, thank you!