We’re back! If it weren’t for the remains of tinsel in the hallway we wouldn’t even think that just a week ago we were celebrating Christmas, the Three Kings and making our resolutions for the new year.
Once again, your sons and daughters begin the most exciting part of the school year in which they will learn a lot of new things: from how to do double-digit divisions to how to get along with that annoying classmate, that demanding teacher or that very naughty friend.
But for all this to be possible, we need to give them room to grow. If we overprotect them, we are depriving them of the opportunity to learn to face life’s challenges.
Let them face their problems, find their own solutions and learn from their experiences. We know that, as parents, your instinct is to protect them, but it is important that they learn to resolve conflicts on their own. Of course we can give them advice, talk about different solutions (at school we even have posters with ideas for solving conflicts), but we should not always be the first to intervene and it is not always a good idea to give them the solution. If we teach them to always turn to an adult to solve their problems, we will not be preparing them for the world.
So, let’s trust them, let’s give them space to learn to solve their own problems and grow as responsible and autonomous people. They can take that step with our support. Happy new year!