Year 10 Parents’ Information Evening 2016 Balancing Work and Play

Aims: To raise awareness of the pressure students are under To give strategies and information on how to manage work and play

Life Balance Many articles written for adults focus on work/life balance. Although teens may not be holding down full-time jobs, they are still under a lot of pressure from their daily responsibilities and will benefit from finding a healthy balance. School work, exams, extra curricular activities, sports, part-time jobs and responsibilities at home can cause a teenagers life to feel like a juggling act.

Life Balance As if that wasn’t enough, they also have the added pressure of worrying about their own self image, self confidence and self esteem due to the constant images they are bombarded with each day And worrying about their own decision making and how they will be viewed by their peers…..

Life Balance Your teenager will need your help to make the right choices to maintain a good life work balance You want your child to excel academically, have a healthy lifestyle and develop good friendships You want your child to have good wellbeing

Set Priorities and Plan a Schedule Start with the thing that cannot be changed, school work Work out how much time your child will need to spend on school work each night @1.5 -2.5 hours per night in year 10 Find out when major coursework deadlines are Find out when the exams are planned for Put all of this on a calendar/timetable/schedule Aim to complete homework on the night it is set but if this is not possible, prioritise. They do not need to do everything in one night! Prioritise what needs to be dome early in the week and what can be done later. Do not leave too much until the weekend as your child will need some down time

Extra Curricular Schedule Find out which days extra curricular clubs fall on and how long the club runs for is it 1 hour or 2? Will there be competitions? Find out roughly how often and when your child will be expected to attend matches or competitions Put these into your schedule Are there any clashes with school work or exams? Discuss how these can be worked around or does something need to give? Being well-rounded is important but do not let your child over commit. Focus on one or two activities that your child really enjoys that will also allow them to get school work completed Do not fill up every space. They need time to relax and be with their friends. Be careful not to plan every minute of every day. There my be illnesses, emergencies or minor upsets do not make this a time to panic. Allow rom to manoeuvre.

Healthy lifestyle and wellbeing Remember to include the following: Time to eat well as a family to encourage talking, Adequate time to relax with family/friends, Time to play music, computer games, text or chat with friends, Exercise Sleep Once you have worked out what school work commitments there are and what extra curricular activities your child would like to be involved in, you are ready to work out a daily schedule but remember to include ‘down time’.

Setting Boundaries In the same way that you set rules for most areas of your children's lives when they were younger, establish your expectations now that they are older. Creating an agreement is a useful step as they can contribute their ideas. Common areas to consider are: When will they be allowed to go out with friends? Can they do sleepovers? How much time are they allowed to spend on the computer? What sites they are allowed to visit? What games they are allowed to play and for how long? When do they need to come off their mobile phones? When do they need to go to sleep? What do you mean by ‘healthy eating’? If the schedule is going to work, you need to set some boundaries. Remind your child that it is not set in stone. Things change and you can reassess at regular intervals to discuss how it is working

Stress Warning Signs A formally positive outlook to school becoming negative Changes in mood Frequent headaches, muscle aches, stomach upsets Changes to physical appearance, lack of hygiene, less showering, brushing teeth, bad breath, dark circles under the eyes, dirty clothes Loss of appetite Failure to get involved in extracurricular activities in which they previously performed well Falling grades Inability to fall asleep Inability to get up in the mornings Despite everything you put into place, your teenager may suffer from stress. Look out for the signs of stress Use this as an opportunity to talk to your child, seek school advice, advice from the GP or counselling

Good to Talk Try to keep the lines of communication open Make this as positive as possible Let them know you are there to help and offer advice at any time, night or day Let them know they can talk to someone else such as a counsellor Page 11 of planner – helpful organisations It’s learning – Student wellbeing section www.youngminds.org.uk

You can download the headspace app for free Headspace - Blue Sky You can download the headspace app for free http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=DmqI1u72QLU Support wellbeing through activities like - Mindfulness