in children. Predictability means things going along as they’ve always gone: sleep at night, up in the morning, cornflakes for breakfast, off to school, activities in the afternoon, dinner with the family. In Louise Fitzhugh’s children’s novel “Harriet the Spy,” Harriet’s mother can’t believe that her daughter always takes a tomato sandwich to school. Always. Harriet has no interest in variety. She’s perfectly happy with the same sandwich, year after year.
Anxiety will crop up for many children again this fall, and it can be intertwined with other feelings, such as excitement and shyness. Here are steps parents can take to help reduce their kids’ back-to-school anxiety and encourage a better start to the fall term.
What’s tricky, of course, is that any of these behaviors can be an indication of many different problems, so probe further. Talking to your kids about their thoughts may help you unravel whether they’re feeling anxious.Playing outside, playing with friends or even just “hanging out” can be powerful ways to