By Elise Zuber LMSW, Director of Outreach at Winning at Home, Inc.
As a child, spring was always my favorite time of the year. Summer days were coming soon. And my teachers noticed a “spring fever” in students as they seemed more antsy for that break from school.
Spring and summer mean that change, transition and closure are right around the corner. For some, change is an exciting time with something new. For others, it may be something to be dreaded, as they crave the routine and safety of the familiar.
As a mentor at Kids Hope USA, you may have noticed your student having similar feelings that are scattered somewhere between the two parallels of excitement and dread—perhaps even they feel both on some level. Some students are excited and antsy. Others may withdraw or act rejected.
CREATING HEALTHY CLOSURE
Whether your student’s experience with transition has been positive or negative, a healthy closure at the end of the year is essential for both of you. The good news is, there are great ways to create a positive experience. Here are some key ways to transition well at the end of the school year with your student.
1. MODEL A HEALTHY TRANSITION
Create a safe place for them to express their feelings about what will be happening at the end of the school year.
2. ASK OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS
Encourage them by listening to their fears and concerns about wrapping up the school year and moving into summer. Invite them to draw a picture of what they think it will be like to say goodbye to you. Be careful about making assumptions about their activities for the summer, such as vacations or camps.
3. ENGAGE WITH EMPATHY
Bring clarity by showing them the number of days you will still meet with them. Have a countdown calendar that you can mark off or a printed flower graphic that has the same number of petals as days that you have left, color a petal together each week you meet. Your student will know it is the last week when the entire flower is colored.
4. TAKE A LOOK BACK
Help your student think about how the year started. Talk to them about the change you’ve seen in them. Dream with them about how they can grow over the summer and how the next school year will be another opportunity to learn new things.
5. ENCOURAGE CONTINUED GROWTH
Foster continued growth and curiosity with something that highlights their accomplishments and gives them opportunities to continue developing them.
Create a box together or have them list or draw things that represent what they are the proudest about from the year. You could also add fun activities for them to do over the summer such as a scavenger hunt around their house, a word search or a fun math activity. This box would also be great to include a short note for them to open each month in the summer, while not promising that you’ll continue to meet in the future.
If you’re a current mentor, be sure to check out the resources on the Kids Hope USA website.
6. STAY TRUE TO YOUR INTENTIONS
Be sure not to promise anything you may not be able to deliver. It may be your intention to continue to be matched with your student the subsequent school year, but families move, life changes and the unexpected can occur.
If you can continue to be matched, what a blessing it will be in the fall when you can reunite again. Your intentionality in creating a safe and healthy closure will carry into the new school year.
SUPPORT YOUR STUDENT
What a gift it is to navigate closure and transition with your student. It’s an opportunity to create a new and positive experience for both of you. Through this season, you can be a source of support and joy for your student as they look toward the end of the school year and into summer.