As families enter the final stretch of the end of year race to finish school, the last push to end strong can be exhausting.

The end of school before a lovely summer break is so close, yet so far away.

There are countless deadlines to meet, projects that need to be finished, paperwork due, and boxes to check.

All of this can certainly lead to tension in families with children of all ages.

But there is hope!

While I can’t promise to take away all of the stress of this time of year, I can offer a few easy to implement tips that may ease the tension and make this final push seem a bit more bearable.

End of Year Stress Free Tips 

1. Understanding  –

 One of the most critical pieces of making it through with as little stress as possible is to offer understanding.

Be understanding of what your children are going through and feeling. Regardless of their age, make sure you acknowledge it as well. Be understanding of yourself and what you’re feeling, too.

It’s likely going to feel crazy and busy and nearly impossible. But acknowledging what you are all feeling, and having a conversation about it, can make it that much more bearable.

Ignoring it won’t help anyone. Have a conversation, allow yourself to feel what you feel, and develop a plan to get through it.

2. Create Motivation –  

With all that needs to be done (in a seemingly condensed time), at the end of the school year, one of the best ways to power through is to create motivation for your child. 

Here are a few ideas: 

• A special end of year Friday meal 
• Watching a favorite show after work is completed
• An enjoyable activity worked into each day or week like one of these brain break ideas

3. Create an End of Year Visual Countdown – 

Because your child likely feels as though they’ll never make it to summer break, creating a visual countdown to help them “see” the light at the end of the tunnel can help significantly.

For younger children, perhaps it’s paper rings hanging on the wall. They cut one ring off each night. Check out these end of year countdown timer ideas.

For your older child, it can be as simple as crossing the days off on a blank calendar.

Whatever it is, find something to give your child physical “proof” that this will all be behind them much sooner than it seems!

4. Long-Term Reward – 

While there might need to be shorter-term rewards during this time of year to help push through, a long-term reward will also be extremely helpful in managing the stress. 

Identify something that your child would love to do to celebrate his success for getting through the year. Work with him on figuring this out!

Here are a few ideas:

• An overnight trip to their favorite place like the Great Wolf Lodge or one of these weekend getaways.
• Their technology upgraded
• Something they’ve had their eye on for a while

Get creative, and make sure this is something very rewarding.

Create a visual of whatever the reward is and put it on their visual countdown. This will serve as a great reminder in those moments when it seems like there is no end in sight.

Additional End of Year Resources

There isn’t anything that will ultimately take away the stress of this time of year. Hopefully, these four tips along with the links to more end of year resources below will provide a little relief and motivation to keep pushing through the end of year.

• 5 End Of Year Pro Tips For Parents
• 4 Crazy Simple End-Of-Year Homework Tips
• 4 Simple Hacks to End the School Year Successfully

What are some things you do this time of year to help you and your child(ren) make it to the end without losing your mind?!

Do you have a child that needs more one on one assistance?  

We offer one-on-one special education tutoring that can be done from anywhere the student is! Why? Because our special education experts conduct their sessions online!

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