If you are wondering – Will my child be safe at school? Then consider this:

Will my child be safe at school?

Yes, your child will almost certainly be safe at school.  Any setting including staying home has some risk. Schools are run by professional staff who have a vested interest in your child being safe and happy so schools are a safe place for children to be.

Will my child feel safe at school?

It can be comforting for parents to know that overwhelmingly, children do feel safe in school.

Data from the from the national Center for Educational Statistics Shows that 95.7% of students at city schools report feeling safe at school. That number jumps to 97.9% feeling safe at suburban schools.

Interestingly, children are more likely to report feeling safe at school if they have “a teacher or adult at school who really cared about them”. (94.1% vs 81.1% for children with no teacher or adult who cared).  *NCES

Why is it important to feel safe at school?

A University Of California study shows that children who feel safe at school are more likely to do well in school. they have better relationships with teachers and peers, have higher GPAs and fewer absences from class.

It also shows that the more students feel safe at school, the more likely they are to get involved in extra-curricular activities like athletics or clubs.

It’s important for parents and educators to help children develop a healthy relationship with school by encouraging them to take part in activities where they can make friends and feel comfortable.

What to do if my child is being bullied at school?

If your child is being bullied, consider talking to their teacher or principal about it. If the bullying is getting worse and there is no improvement, you may want to talk to a school counselor or another adult who works in the school.

You will very likely get the support that you need by talking with the school. If however you don’t then you can also contact the police department at your local police station to file an official report. The police will help you file a report and work with the school district to keep your child safe at school.

If your child is being bullied by peers, there are steps that you should take as well:

Talk to your child about what happened and why it happened. Ask them how they feel about it, what they want you to do, and how they think other people should be treated.

Ask them if anyone else has been involved in their bullying situation. If so, ask them if they have spoken with that person since then and whether or not the situation has been resolved.

If possible, have a conversation with the bully’s parents or guardians. This ensures they know what their son/daughter is going through at school.

Should I move my child to a different school?

These are some things to keep in mind if you’re considering enrolling your child in a new school or making any changes to his or her current one:

• There are many factors that go into making sure your child will be safe at school, from the school’s policies and procedures to the teachers and parents who staff it.
• Be prepared for a change in routine. If your child has been at the same school all year, he or she may not be used to the idea of moving or changing teachers or classrooms. Be as supportive as possible and let him/her know that everything will be OK when you move him/her over.
• Talk with other parents who have children at the same grade level as yours. Find out what they like best about their schools and ask them questions about their experiences there so that you can compare notes with other families in similar situations. You can also ask them how they handled certain situations such as discipline problems and parent-teacher conferences. This information may help ease some of your concerns about leaving family behind when you relocate.
• Research the different options available for elementary schools

Next, check out our post on building a resilient, happy child.

1.       Make Yourself More Accountable

Planning to make yourself accountable is a great way to improve your study.  Try writing out a short mission statement that outlines how you will study and refer back to it to stay focused.  Another way to use accountability to your advantage is to find an accountability partner – Sharing your goals with someone and knowing that you are going to report to them on you progress forces you to weigh the discomfort of completing the task against the shame of having to come clean about completing the task

2.       Works In Sprints, Rather Than Long Sessions

Breaking a task down to bite-sized chunks now only makes the job feel more achievable – it also sets you up for earlier success and the sense of momentum that builds.

The folks over at Buffer.com also highlight that breaking work up also keeps you from getting board and helps us retain information.

3.       Focus Mode

Though you may be able to walk and chew gum at the same time, it turns out that being focused on a single task does get that task done faster and better.

When a distraction takes you out of deep concentration it can take as long as 5 minutes to regain the focus so setting yourself up for fewer distractions when studying is a great hack.

So put your phone into Focus Mode and let others around you know that you will be offline until your next scheduled break.

4.       Mix It Up

Test different settings and see what works best for you.  You may find going to the library on a schedule works because there are fewer distractions. 

Perhaps a ritual of rising a few hours earlier will result in more focused study. 

Group study where you can discuss the topic with a peer may be what works for you

Try different things and don’t be afraid to abandon any that you find aren’t worthwhile.

5.       Visualise It – Mind-Map

Mind-maps are a great tool for putting the visual processing side of our brain to use for study.  In particular, mind-maps are helpful for interpreting the information that we take in – Scientifically proven  strategy 😊

6.       Chew Gum When Studying

OK, so you can chew gum while walking though multitasking generally is less effective than focusing on one task. 

That said – a mind hack known as context dependency explains why chewing gum while you study can improve recall if you also chew while recalling.

It’s Hard to keep up I know but stay with me here.

7.       Read Before the Lecture

This just makes sense without much explanation.

If you take the time to review a topic the best way get the feel for the key points and think about what you do and don’t understand ahead of a lecture, then you are going to get more out of the lecture.  This is because your existing, high level understanding of the scope and key points will allow you to focus more on understanding the detail.

It will also allow give you the chance to have concepts that you weren’t clear on explained in a different way and time to think about any clarifying questions.

8.        Eat A Frog for Breakfast

Twenty-first century study guru Mark Twain, known best for his unconventional breakfast preferences says going in hard and doing the least desirable task first is the best way to get it done.  This is wise advice for any student that struggles with procrastination.  The battle is in your head so that’s where you need to fight!  Just get in and get it done regardless of how hard it is or how imperfect the result is. – JUST. GET. IT. DONE. –  so you can move on to the next thing without the mental burden.

9.       Flash

Like the Mind Map, Flash Cards engage different pathways in your brain for learning.

Usign Flashcards also introduces more variety which helps keep study interesting.

10.   Make A Distractions List.

Talking about mental burden, if you find yourself distracted by some off-topic thought or task and it’s disrupting your flow, try adding it to a Distraction List. 

This tactic that is often referenced as a way to deal with persistent thoughts that keep you awake at night can also be great for parking a thought that is keeping you from focusing on study.

The idea is that your brain won’t drop the thought it out of subconscious fear that of it does then the thought will never be handled.  By writing the interrupting thought down on a list for later, you are addressing this subconscious fear so your brain will have an easier job staying focused on your study.

Developing self-awareness

Self-awareness is the ability to recognize and understand your own thoughts and feelings. It’s the first step in building resilience, because it allows you to see yourself clearly—and make sure you know what works for you.

For example: If I’m feeling anxious about my job interview tomorrow, but don’t know why or how much it will affect me, then my self-awareness isn’t developed enough yet. If instead I realize that it’s a problem with me being too nervous (rather than being in the wrong place), then I can work on developing this skill further by collecting evidence supporting my theory: “I’m so bad at interviewing,” or maybe “I just don’t like small talk.”

Improving your ability to cope with stressors

• Recognize what triggers stress. Stress is a normal part of life, but when you’re under constant pressure and dealing with difficult situations, it can become overwhelming. To improve your ability to cope with stressful situations, it’s important that you understand what triggers your stress and know your limits.
• Practice relaxation techniques such as meditation or yoga regularly—this will help keep your mind calm during stressful times.
• Set realistic goals for yourself so that they don’t feel overwhelming when they are reached (e.g., “I’m going to run three miles every day” instead of “I’ll run 10 miles one day”).
• Don’t take on too much at once; take things step by step if possible so that there is less chance of burning out on one thing before moving onto another task/goal/project..

Connect with others

Connecting with others is important for resilience. You can have a great life if you connect with people, and the best way to do this is through relationships. Here are some tips:

• Be open minded: Open your mind to new ideas and experiences, even if they seem unusual or uncomfortable at first. This will help you develop a stronger sense of self-awareness that’s necessary for connecting with others effectively (and vice versa).
• Be friendly: People often say that we need friends more than anything else in order to be happy—but what does this mean? It means you should make friends wherever possible; after all, without them there’d be no one else who could understand what it was like growing up as an introvert/extrovert!

Maintain a positive outlook

Maintaining a positive outlook is essential to resilience. When you think of the word “resilient,” you might think of someone who bounces back from tough times or doesn’t let setbacks get them down. But this isn’t necessarily true; there’s more to being resilient than just surviving bad things in your life.

To be truly resilient, it’s important that you recognize how much opportunities can change your life for the better—and how much these changes can help make things better for yourself and others around you too! If something happens that seems like it will derail your plans or make things worse, don’t give up hope—think about what happened instead as an opportunity for growth rather than failure (no matter how hard it may seem at first). The key here is not letting anything bad happen enough times so that there are no opportunities left in front of us anymore…

Accept that change is part of life

When we’re young, we may think of change as something to avoid. But as we get older and have more experiences, we realize that change is part of life. We may not like it or understand why it happens, but accepting it allows us to move forward with our lives in a better way.

Acceptance is a key factor when building resilience because it allows us to see things from other people’s perspectives—for example:

• Accepting that your parents might not always be there when you need them (or know what they’re doing) because they’ve moved on with their lives;
• Accepting that another person has had an experience similar to yours but still manages his/her life well;
• Accepting that some days are harder than others but overall life isn’t perfect either

Move toward your goals

• Focus on the positive.
• Keep your goals realistic.
• Be patient, but keep moving forward.
• Don’t let setbacks stop you from reaching your goal or making progress toward it. If something goes wrong—if there’s an obstacle in your path—don’t let it discourage you! You’ll find a way around those challenges if they stand in the way of achieving your goals and dreams; just keep working toward them until they’re done!

Take care of yourself

• Get enough sleep. Sleep is the most important thing you can do for yourself, as well as being one of the best ways to build resilience.
• Eat a healthy diet. A healthy diet will help keep you feeling energized and focused throughout your day, making it easier to handle stress and anxiety when they arise.
• Exercise regularly (preferably daily). Regular exercise is key for building resilience because it helps keep our bodies strong physically and mentally through regular physical activity or mental challenges like meditation or yoga! The more often we move our bodies—whether by running around outside or taking a walk after work—the better prepared we are for whatever life throws at us next!
• Take time out from work sometimes—even if only 5 minutes every day! Taking breaks from work every once in awhile allows us all sorts of benefits including reducing blood pressure levels which has been shown time after time again; burning calories faster than usual; increasing productivity levels across various tasks such as writing reports during conference calls etcetera.”

Nurture a resilient spirit

Luckily, there are a few things you can do to cultivate resilience. Here’s how:

• Be grateful for what you have. When we’re in a state of overwhelm or stress, it’s easy to forget our blessings (and this is true even if it’s just the light outside your window). But being thankful for what we have helps us feel more grounded and balanced by reminding us that everything is okay at this moment—even if it isn’t exactly ideal. Plus, gratitude has been shown to reduce anxiety by strengthening our immune systems; so don’t be afraid to tell yourself “thank you” every day!
• Practice mindfulness meditation regularly so that when something stressful happens in your life (or even just when something doesn’t go according to plan), instead of getting upset or overwhelmed with negativity over whatever happened (e.g., “I shouldn’t have said ‘no'”), try remembering all those times where things went right instead: “I was able to get through my morning commute without getting behind schedule” or “My daughter got into college after all.” Being grateful helps us become aware of all these positive moments while simultaneously giving ourselves permission not take them for granted anymore—which leads me directly onto my next point…

Build resilience by connecting with others

Building resilience is a process. It’s not just about being resilient, it’s about building a positive quality of being that will help you get through tough times. There are many ways to build resilience: connecting with others, maintaining a positive outlook on life, accepting change and moving toward your goals. Taking care of yourself and nurturing your spirit are also important facets of the process.

This article has explored the importance of building resilience and how you can do it. As we saw, resilience is a complex trait that can be learned and improved through connection with others, maintaining a positive outlook, accepting change as part of life, moving toward your goals, taking care of yourself and nurturing a resilient spirit.

Building a child’s resilience gives them tools to deal with life’s challenges including things like Bullying.

If you are worried about your child, here are some signs of bullying to look out for:

• Feelings of helplessness or decreased self esteem
• Changes in sleep patterns
• Changes in eating patterns
• Unexplainable injuries
• Frequent tears or anger
• Mood swings
• Feels ill in the morning
• Becomes aggressive and unreasonable
• Declining grades, loss of interest in schoolwork, or not wanting to go to school
• Refuses to talk about what is wrong
• Has unexplained bruises, cuts, scratches
• Comes home with missing or damaged belongings or clothes
• Comes home hungry.

If you suspect your child may be getting bullied you should contact the school at the earliest opportunity, as bullying problems can sometimes be resolved with guidance from staff. Don’t leave it too long – you need act sooner rather than later.

If you are after more information on bullying then check out the resources at stopbullying.gov, Otherwise, why not have a look at another school-aged related topics on SqueakyLocker!