Did you Know....

• Children are often anxious about a school year ending, even though they are excited about summer.
• Summer puts distance between the relationships that they have built with peers and teachers, and takes away the comfort of a predictable routine.
• All children (1) react to change, (2) crave structure/stability, (3) and have anxieties, but children who struggle with an elevated level of anxiety struggle much more with this change. (1 in 8 children have an anxiety disorder, which is an elevated level of anxiety that controls his/her overall functioning).
• Symptoms of a child struggling with end-of-year anxiety include: nervousness, worry, high levels of restlessness, irritability, over-reacting to situations, difficulty concentrating in school (i.e. “My mind is going blank!”), somatic complaints (i.e. stomach pains and headaches, difficulty falling asleep, and difficulty staying asleep. Children may even have panic attacks, or autonomic hyperactivity (i.e. shortness of breath, dizziness, rapid heart beat, dry mouth, nausea, and diarrhea).

What Can I Do to Help My Child With The End-Of-School-Year Transition?

• Discuss some of your summer plans with your child, and get his/her input on activities. Talk about child care plans. Talk about a typical day. Show when special events will happen on a calendar.
• Have a discussion regarding your child’s feelings about the end of the school year so that he can increase his awareness of what he is feeling, why he is feeling it, and how he is showing what he is feeling.
• Help to come up with ideas to getting some of the negative feelings to resolve, such as making a card for teachers, getting phone numbers of friends, and talking about exciting new experiences for the summer and next school year.
• Empower your child by validating his/her feelings instead of trying to talk your child out of them. Many adults think it’s best to distract kids from their feelings or try to change their child’s feelings with positive thoughts, but it often makes the negative feelings last longer and get stronger until they are validated. Listen to your child’s feelings without interrupting, and acknowledge them (i.e. “I know you are nervous about the end of the school year.”). Then, let your child know that you care about her feelings, and that you are looking forward to your summer plans with your child.

                                                                            
                                                                                      --Adapted from Henry, 2016; Family Education.

This time of year with extra daylight and sunshine, it is difficult to resist packing in as much as possible after school---art shows, baseball games, playdates, dance recitals, special weekend activities....
It's important to keep in mind that even with our busy schedules, our children will continue to need the right amount of sleep in order to meet the daily demands of school and home. If anything, they need more, not less! A recent increase in behavioral symptoms in your child could be reduced by something as simple as putting her to bed 30 minutes earlier each night. Below is some important facts to consider about the impact of sleep of a child's academic, emotional, and behavioral functioning.

Click here Did you know....

• Sleep duration accounts for 64% in the variance in cognitive processes that are essential to academic functioning, including working memory, short-term memory, and attention.
• Decreased sleep quantity AND quality is associated with poorer procedural learning abilities and academic performance.
• Shifting children’s bedtimes later by one hour has been associated with fewer positive emotions and poorer emotional regulation within 4 days.
• Insufficient sleep is associated with higher rates of aggression, depressive symptoms, irritability, hyperactivity, accidental injuries, stressful parent-child relationships, and increased problems with interpersonal relationships.
• Insufficient sleep is associated with lower ratings of concentration, self-esteem, emotional/mental health,and life satisfaction.
• As many as 25% of children experience some sleep difficulty
• The prevalence of sleep difficulty is even higher for children with certain medical conditions or psychiatric disorders (i.e. pain, asthma, ADHD, Autism, depression, anxiety)

                                  Factors that Affect Sleep
Quantity: Recommended Total Sleep for Each Age Group
Infants  14-15 hrs
Toddlers 12-14 hrs
Preschoolers 11-13 hrs
School-age Children (6-12 yrs) 10-11 hrs
Adolescents 8.5-9.5 hrs
The 30-60 minutes before bedtime
Start a routine of calming activities like bath, reading, etc. before bedtime. Avoid high energy activities, screen time, and food.
The sleep environment
Television in the bedroom, co-sleeping, and a hectic sleep environment impact quality and quantity.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)
Your child’s sleep may be impacted by OSA if he is sleepy during the day, has difficulty getting up in morning, gasps for breath in sleep, breathes through mouth, sweats excessively during sleep, is a restless sleeper, or has headaches in the morning.
 
Resources: Laracy, Ridgard, and DuPaul, NASP Communique,2015; Owens, 2007; Steenari et al, 2003; Vriend et al, 2013; Curcio, Ferrara, and DeGennaro, 2006; Fredriksen, Rhodes, Reddy, and Way, 2004; Gregory, Van der Ende, Willis, and Verhulst, 2008; Robers, Robers, and Duong, 2008; Stein, Mendelsohn, Obermeyer, Amromin, and Benca, 2001; Roberts et al, 2008.
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