As the prep year turns into a few weeks, sometimes situations change for the child. The friendship they thought was solid can shift, or perhaps someone acted inappropriately on the yard. Perhaps the child was not hearing effectively the directions of the teacher. There are many small factors that can suddenly turn a sunny situation into feelings of sadness.

This is all about a child learning to adjust to changing scenarios. It is early days of building resilience in a child, developing emotional intelligence and building social literacies. Parents can suddenly feel anxious when what seemed a perfect start turns around to being a child who does not want to go to school. Sounds dramatic but the turn around in the child's mood can happen quickly and dramatically.

What the parent does now is critical in showing the child how to deal with school issues.

Here are some easy steps to follow:

Listen to their concerns.
Show empathy but recognise that this is a problem we need to talk to the teacher about.
Try and get the child to articulate to the teacher the problem.

Sometimes this does not work subject to the child's emotional maturity. Once the teacher knows the concerns, they will work with the child on the problem.

Tap in with the child along the way asking how is the problem going? Remember, we are teaching them that from an early age they own the problem and with good support we can find solutions.

Don't forget to affirm the child once the problem is solved. “Well done. I am proud that you worked out that problem with help from those that you trust.”