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People are Talking...

by Editorial Staff--Suburban Family Magazine

What are kids thinking?

“Do you feel prepared to transition to a new school?”

Miranda, 15, Freshman, Shawnee High School, Medford
“It’s no different than going to school last year and the years before. However, I am nervous to go to high school because there will be more people that I don’t know. It’s a new school and I don’t want to be at the bottom of the food chain! Also I have forgotten some subjects, because I haven’t done work in those areas, like math, over the summer. All in all, I am excited to return to school.”

Samantha, 12, Seventh-grader, Memorial Middle School, Medford
“I am prepared to go back to school since it will be almost the same as last year. We’ll still have lockers, seven periods and we will be on teams again. It will be a little different because we will be meeting new people to be our friends, our lockers will be in the halls instead of homeroom, and the seventh- and eighth-grade building is bigger than the sixth-grade one. I have forgotten information in some subjects (such as science, social studies and some language terms), but I’m still really excited to go back to school and meet new people.”

Mom vs. Mom

“Should you push your child to stick with an activity or sport after they’ve lost interest?”

Cindy Suta, Mount Laurel mother of Jason, 16 and Julie, 13.
“My rule is that once my kids sign up for an activity, they can’t quit; they must finish out their commitment. Once it’s over, I encourage them to find a different interest that may appeal to them. Over the years, my kids have pleasantly surprised me with some of their endeavors, a couple of which I never would have imagined them participating in.”

Beth Mills, Washington Township mother of Samantha, 17, Jenna, 15, and Matt, 12.
“I don't believe in pushing a child to stay in an activity they've lost interest in. However, I would also look into why the child wants to quit the activity. Are there other issues at play? I know, through personal experience, that sometimes a child may be successful in a sport and then hit a plateau. They continue to work hard, but see no improvement. If this is the case, instead of pushing them I would be encouraging and also involve the coach/trainer as well. Often, sticking with it is a great life lesson for the child. It encourages character building and builds self-esteem. I don't believe in pushing a child to do an activity he or she has no interest in. However, before a child quits an activity, make sure it is what he or she truly wants and not some other factors at play. I believe when a child finds an activity he or she is good at, then as a parent, you have to nurture and encourage this and pay attention to what the child is experiencing in that activity.”

Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Family Magazine, Volume 2, Issue 6 (August, 2011).
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