AFTER SCHOOL MOODS

 Q: When my child comes home from school, they completely meltdown and seem angry. I have asked their teacher if she is seeing these behaviors at school and she assured me my child is a "model student" and she hasn't seen the behaviors described above. Why is my child behaving so poorly after school, at home? 

 

A: Children often work very hard to manage their emotions and follow the rules of their environment.  This can be exhausting for them, both emotionally and cognitively.  It takes a lot of energy to read the social cues of their peers and teacher and determine an appropriate response.  Children tend to exhibit their most challenging behaviors when they feel the safest because they implicitly trust that the adults in the situation will be able to help them manage their feelings.  On some level, they know that even when they are acting their worst, the adults, usually parents, will still love them.  The short answer is they are worn out from being on their best behavior during the school day so they have an emotional meltdown when they walk in your door.  





Comments