Child care professional Kara can tell when a parent of one of her toddlers is deployed simply by the increase in tantrums and clinging and the loss of skills like potty training.
What’s happening here? The short answer is stress. Kara’s toddlers are communicating (sometimes very loudly) that they are experiencing changes to their small world that they don’t understand, have no control over, and don’t know what to do about. Their bodies and brains are reacting with the …
There’s no question that military life can be stressful for all members of military families, including young children. Child care providers working with children from military families need to recognize that living in a military family has emotional ups and downs and find ways to help children cope with the stresses of military family life. The first step in helping children manage their stress is to understand how and why children in military families experience stress.
Stress is a part of life and can be found all around us. Child care is no exception. There is good stress and bad stress. Stress can motivate us to get things, but too much stress can make our lives seem too hectic and overwhelming. Remember that children feel stress just as adults do. Child Care providers should be aware of the stressors each child is experiencing, and should be active in helping children in their child care programs manage …
