How to Tell if Your Child is Happy at School

**Collaborative post**

Does your son or daughter leave the house with a big smile on their face each morning? If so, it’s pretty safe to assume that they’re happy at school and don’t dread their time there. Unfortunately, not all kids are this lucky, especially not every single day. Parents can’t always rely on their youngsters to open up when there’s a problem at school, so sometimes they must monitor the signs on their own. Here’s some advice from a prep school in Hertfordshire.

There are lots of pretty obvious tell-tale signs that your child is not happy at school, such as refusing to go in the mornings, faking sickness, poor grades, withdrawal and grumpiness in general. With younger children, they might start wetting the bed out of the blue, which could be a symptom of anxiety. If they’re suddenly being naughtier than usual, either at home or at school, it could be because they are crying out for some attention. It’s important that you get to the bottom of why they are behaving this way, rather than simply punishing them for it. 

Sometimes it’s a little harder to know whether or not your child is truly happy. You’ll have to keep an eye on them and encourage good communication at all times. Ask them about their day at school, but try not to pounce on them with 101 questions as soon as they get home; they might want to relax a little bit after a long day before talking about it again. Try and have these chats one-to-one so that your child doesn’t feel embarrassed to open up to you. You should also ask open-ended questions so that your child has to give you more than one word as an answer. 

Having a good relationship with your child’s teachers will also help you determine if they are happy or not. You should plan regular meetings to discuss your child’s progress; if they are performing well, it’s unlikely that they are unhappy, although this is somewhat of a generalisation. If there are any warning flags, you and the teacher can resolve the situation together.

Upon noticing any signs that your child isn’t happy at school, you should try and talk to them about it and find out what’s up. Perhaps they’re struggling with certain subjects and just need a little extra support. Maybe it’s something a little more serious, like dyslexia, but either way there are solutions. Another child could be bullying your child, which is something else that can be dealt with appropriately. Listen carefully to what your child tells you when you ask them what’s up; don’t interrupt them and don’t judge them, or they might not want to open up to you again going forward.