Topic 3: THE CHILD 4. Parenting a schooler 4.

1 Common Behavioral Problems: a) Underachievement: Underachievement can be defined as a discrepancy between the childs school performance and some index of his or her actual ability. Ability may be measured by test scores or even by observing the child at home or at school. Children who are underachievers usually have no identifiable physical or learning disabilities; their academic performance is just significantly lower than their intelligence level. There is no typical profile of an underachiever. Some scrape by with passing marks. Others get an A on one exam and flunk another. Some are good students whose grades suddenly drop. Child development experts say its a problem parents should address early on to avoid issues of self-esteem, a lack of effort and more. But understanding the underachiever is not an easy task. Experts advise parents to watch for patterns of behavior, such as: Fear of failing Underachievers who fear failure may actually be perfectionists who equate their worth as a person with what they produce. Children who feel this way may have parents who focus too closely on grades. Sibling rivalry Children who feel they should achieve at the same level as an older or younger sibling may react by underachieving. Power play These children use passive-aggressive ways of getting back at parents whose expectations are too high. Late bloomers These are children who simply take a long time to decide that doing well in school is something they really want. Usually, children are underachievers for more than one reason. Other causes for a lack of motivation include a family crisis, such as death or divorce. WHAT WON'T WORK If you have an underachiever at home, you probably know better than anyone else which strategies will prove to be futile. Just to confirm what you may know already, here is a list of interventions which are most likely to fail: 1. Criticizing, carping and complaining may help you let off steam, but will do more harm than good. If your child suffers from low self-esteem, your verbal attacks will crush his already fragile sense of self.

2. Giving advice may appear more benign, but it is usually just as ineffective as criticism. Especially for high school students, advice is taken as a more subtle form of disapproval. Even a simple suggestion which begins with, "Why don't you try...," implies to an adolescent that he is inferior to you because he did not think of that on his own. 3. Comparisons to other siblings or classmates can be extremely hurtful and destructive. "Why can't you do x like your sister does?" is the ultimate put-down to any academically struggling child. 4. Even comparisons to yourself will backfire. Statements such as, "I loved math in high school," "I did my homework the first thing when I came home from school," and "I worked hard at school but felt satisfied with my results," only serve to discourage weaker students. Such comments make children feel that they must live up to your standards, which may unrealistic and unreachable for them.

WHAT PARENTS CAN DO 1.Have your child evaluated by a learning specialist. Make sure he does not have any hidden learning disabilities which are being misdiagnosed as lack of motivation. 2. Be sure to praise even the smallest step in the right direction. No improvement, however temporary, should go unnoticed and unacknowledged by you. Nothing motivates a child more than the prospect of success. Even before report cards are mailed or exams graded, if your child sees that he can earn your approval with a little effort, that will spur him on to even greater achievement. 3. Show your child that you are sincerely interested in whatever interests him. Paying attention to your child's thoughts, preferences and feelings, is the greatest boost you can give to his level of confidence. Fortified with this hike in his selfesteem, he will be more willing to take the risk of trying harder at school. 4. Encourage and support your child's stated goals and aspirations even if you suspect they may never become actualized.

4.2 Role of the Nurse in the care of a healthy or ill schooler. a) The school nurse provides direct care to students. The school nurse provides care for injuries and acute illness for all students and long-term management of students with special health care needs. Responsibilities include assessment and treatment within the scope of professional nursing practice, communication with parents, referral to physicians, and provision or supervision of prescribed nursing care. The school nurse has a unique role in provision of school health services for children with special health needs, including children with chronic illnesses and disabilities of various degrees of severity. Children with special health needs are included in the regular school classroom setting as authorized by federal and state laws. b) the school nurse assesses the overall system of care and develops a plan for ensuring that health needs are met. Responsibilities include development of plans for responding to emergencies and disasters and condential communication and documentation of student health information. c) The school nurse provides screening and referral for health conditions. Screening includes but is not limited to vision, hearing, and BMI assessments (as determined by local policy). d) The school nurse promotes a healthy school environment. By monitoring immunizations, ensuring appropriate exclusion for infectious illnesses, and reporting communicable diseases as required by law. e) The school nurse provides health education by providing health information to individual students and groups of students through health education, science, and other classes.
PLAY
For a child, play is more than fun. Play is how children learn. While playing, children learn how to interact and be social with others. They also learn about the world in general. Being at the hospital is disruptive to a childs life. Play is one way to reconnect a child to his or her home life. The more a child can play, the happier the child will be. Happiness promotes recovery.

Benefits
Play can distract a child from pain and worry. Play can also help a child get used to the new people and things they will see at the hospital. Many hospitals have child life specialists who run play programs and play with kids. Ask your childs nurse about this. Using play, a child life specialist can help a child understand more about the hospital and his or her condition. As a child becomes more comfortable being at the hospital, he or she will become more cooperative and less anxious. Play is also important because it can help a child regain confidence and build self-esteem.

Suggested toys for children aged 6 to 8 years

Younger school-age children may enjoy the following toys and games: books puzzles: 20 to 75 pieces dolls and doll houses construction toys, cars, and trucks Lego pencil and paper games such as Tic-Tac-Toe board and card games electronic games (ask your childs nurse about this) space toys arts and crafts such as paper, paints, crayons, markers, glue, scissors, clay, and Play-doh dramatic play school play grooming items collecting items such as stickers, stamps, and baseball cards

Suggested toys for children aged 9 to 11 years

Older school-age children may enjoy the following toys and games: word games board games books and magazines models electronic games (ask your childs nurse about this) computers puzzles: 75 to 275 pieces building sets such as Lego recorded music more challenging arts and crafts paper, pens, markers journals collecting items

Safety alert
Children at this age are becoming independent but do not always pay attention to safety. Kids at this age are also easily distracted. These kids need supervision. Children at this age can also be influenced by peer pressure. They may do things against their usual judgement.