If your child’s grades are dropping
DO NOT:
- Yell at them for three hours
- Take away their devices and look through them
- Make them sit in their rooms in silent and do their homework alone
- Side with the teacher and not get your child’s side of the story
- Tell them that their grades are the most important thing they should worry about
INSTEAD:
- Ask if they’re having trouble with other students or teachers
- Sit down with them and help them with what they don’t understand
- Speak calmly instead of yelling
- Don’t invade their privacy by looking through their devices
- Don’t take away their hobbies as punishment
- Never make them feel unsafe or unable to trust you
This has been a message from a struggling high school junior that wishes their own parents actually did this stuff.
Bonus: Don’t look through their freaking backpacks. Chances are they know damn well they have loads of unfinished papers and the stress of knowing is so overwhelming they don’t even wanna look at it.
Send this to my mom