With These Sensory-Rich Activities HelpYour Kids Handle Stressful Situations
Y ou can see it happening, almost in slow motion: Your child goes from playing and laughing to frowning in less than a second. They start to cry, and suddenly, a meltdown is underway. Is this just the way raising young kids is? Does a lack of sleep, change in routine, or intense hunger always have to lead to a meltdown? While it’s human to feel emotions and express them, you can use certain strategies to help your child navigate major emotions and calm down. The key is helping them tap into their central nervous system with activities that engage their senses.
especially in situations that are stressful for them. That’s where activities that engage the five senses can be really beneficial. Sensory activities that utilize the five senses can help your little one connect their body to their immediate surroundings and the larger world around them.
Here are some sensory-rich activities that can help kids feel calmer in stressful times:
• Make a pile of pillows and jump into it. • Put on some fun music and dance. • Bounce your little one on your lap or an exercise ball. • Take them for a spin around the house in a box or laundry basket; kids can even race each other. • Create a slide by propping a mattress or exercise mat against the couch.
These are activities you can use right where you are to help your child find their calm again, even in a meltdown. According to early childhood development expert Alyssa Blask Campbell, sensory input stays in the system for about two hours, meaning even just five minutes of these types of activities can give you and your child hours of calm throughout the day.
Just like adults, younger kids sometimes need support to regulate their emotions,
Increase in Accusations of Cheating and Cyberbullying
Back to School (sort of…)
collaboration,” or cheating, since the onset of COVID-19. Additionally, allegations of cyberbullying have increased dramatically. All parents should be concerned about these trends and monitor their children closely. Chegg is a very popular app used to help students with difficult homework problems. It is the modern version of a tutor. Many college students have been accused of cheating via Chegg during final exams this past spring. For many of these students, the lines were blurred because many exams were taken online and were open note, open book. Most colleges and universities are aggressively pursuing disciplinary action against the students involved and Chegg is cooperating in the investigations. The penalty for this offense is a zero on the final. For most students, that means an F in the class. This can have a devastating effect on the HOPE Scholarship.
Equally as serious are the allegations of cyberbullying. We have seen this pop up in a variety of ways: creation of fake social media profiles to humiliate others, terroristic threats to teachers or other students, catfishing, TikTok videos containing racial slurs — the list goes on and on. Some schools are pursuing criminal action in addition to school discipline. Most of these kids think they are being funny, struggling to try to “fit in.” I recommend you have an open and honest dialogue with your kids about this. Talk through different scenarios with them to make sure they understand how quickly they can get themselves in trouble. Kids are going to make mistakes. That is not always a bad thing. They will learn and grow from those mistakes. However, we owe it to them to help them avoid the big mistakes with big costs.
Everyone should be back to school by now. For some, that means being in a classroom, and for others it is a virtual experience. Whatever the situation may be, parents need to be aware of the stress that accompanies the “new normal” for our kids and the risks that stress poses. I specialize in defending students charged with school code of conduct violations in Georgia public and private schools. We have seen an increase in accusations of “unlawful
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