Raising Kids Today

By: Sasha Valente 

Raising kids today is challenging. Times have changed, and the pressures are on our kids more than ever before. Children are bombarded with a highly competitive environment; they are expected to excel in the classroom, on the sports field and at extra-curricular activities.

As a parent, one would look at all this pressure and think “What happens to my child when he/she leaves school?” If there is pressure in the classroom then many could agree that it is no easier in the real world. Parents want to afford their children the opportunities to do well out of school, add value to their careers and still be allowed to make mistakes and change their minds. However, there is no longer the ‘luxury’ of being lost anymore given our current economic climate, and parents are under pressure to guide their children in the right direction to realise their best future – sooner rather than later.

The question then is, how do we alleviate the stress so that our children can still be children and make mistakes and learn? Our children are striving for recognition and approval to build their sense of self-worth - whether that means hours practicing gymnastics, or getting to bed at 22:00 every night after studying to get those top marks. We need to raise our kids teaching them that they possess intrinsic value - not because they are good at something. It’s important to remember to praise your child for who they are – even before recognising their achievements.
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Saying that, we all want to achieve. We all want to flourish. In order to do so in the schooling environment, it’s important to make sure there is synergy between the child’s subject choice and their individual capabilities, skills and natural talent.

What is a Career Assessment?

A career assessment maps outwhat your child’s core competencies are from a cognitive perspective, and how they view themselves from a personality perspective. They also complete an interest survey, and using all this data, a recommendation can be made to your child predicting the course they are most likely to excel in. Selecting the right subjects, the right course of study and the right career will go a long way in helping your child lead a life that’s congruent and truly happy. Making ill choices early in life can have devastating effects on the child’s self-worth, well-being, motivation, attitude and overall confidence.

At the end of the day, we as parents are responsible to ensure our children have a good self-esteem, because a healthy self-esteem is the best precursor for success throughout life. Being able to optimise in the classroom, and the work environment, will evidently contribute to a healthy self-esteem.

Please feel free to get in contact with us for a description and in-depth understanding of what our assessments bring forward about your child, and any further questions you may have.

ATTENTION TEACHERS & PRINCIPALS:  

Holistan would like schools in the Johannesburg area to consider having Career Assessments available on site. Holistan is willing to send a consultant to your school premises once a week OR once a month to host assessment sessions. This is valuable for parents, learners and the school because:

• Career assessments assist with subject choice
• Subjects chosen which align with the learners capabilities means a better chance of attaining higher marks
• Better probability for more learners passing each Grade each year 
• Better idea of what tertiary choices to make, along with better probability in flourishing in chosen course of study

Our contact details are:

011 201 2142
info@holistan.com
www.holistan.com