Are you a helicopter parent?

A parents' role is to raise responsible and independent adults. Children need to learn how to solve their own problems at school and parents need to monitor how their child is doing and offer guidance along the way. Striking the balance between being involved during your child's time at school yet not being overly protective or a 'helicopter parent', requires preparedness.

Here are tips for success:

• Support your child's curiosity, intelligence and hard work, provide opportunities to expand their interests and talents



• Help your child get organized, it's a teachable skill



• Be a partner with your child's school, this is where they learn to respect authority



• Be a support with homework but do not do it for them.



• Help them plan ahead for big projects and "crunch" times, show them where to find resources.



• Check to see how much homework still needs to get done, encourage resourcefulness and provide a balance between leisure and school requirements

Teenage Extreme Texting!

Technology is a wonderful support for a child's education. It offers immense value and provides a wonderful opportunity for connectivity. However, recent research on the upward trend of 'texting' is raising concern about teen sleep deprivation, anxiety, repetitive stress injury and lower grades at school. In the US, on average teens send 80 texts a day with some teens reportedly sending up to 28,000 a month.

Here are a few tips if you suspect extreme 'texting' or other concerning internet behaviour?

• take action immediately if you suspect your child is at risk



• most experts believe that you should insist on knowing your child's password and monitoring their e-mail and other online communications.



• Talk calmly to your child or teenager about what you have noticed



• Set boundaries



• Reinforce the need for personal and psychological safety when texting, using online communications and/or the Internet



• Make sure your teenager understands the dangers of giving out personal information or sending photos over the Internet.



• Seek professional help

Contact IPS Worldwide www.eap.com.au for ideas on how we can assist you.