Emotional awareness & Expressions at schools 3

The onset of teenage must be welcomed as a wonderful developmental stage.The children begin to feel and think more than as children. Nevertheless it may be a confusing stage for the thirteen year olds because they perceive themselves as matured children while the elders at home and teachers at school treat them as young lot of the high school graders.

Ponder over the following point. As fifth graders the children are placed at the highest class of primary section in assembly or delegation of responsibility as leaders of primary section.

 After they are promoted they are positioned as the youngest of the high school. It is not unusual to find 6^th or 7^th graders as the noisy and unsettled classes.

As they are adapting through their unsettlement they reach a stage of maturity. The teenage then starts after adapting. Then comes the puberty that makes them feel matured as well as confused. Therefore the elders must have a good understanding and awareness about the manifestations of their emotional expressions.

               Elders need to observe the emotions on a three point scale. Intense, normal/moderate and minimal or least reactions or responses. The various levels of emotions can be expected at different situations by the same children. What ever the situation may be, understanding the behavior and handling the situation as well as the emotion amicably is important.

Being sympathetic is a better option than rudeness or anger with a teenager.

 The best process of grooming is to groom them while they are away from the situation. This will help them to understand and prepare for their teenage tantrums. The best grooming process includes �how to handle� emotions.

It is not about controlling emotions but it is about not to make the emotions contagious. It is about containing to a state of mental equilibrium. This is possible if the children are trained regularly as part of the school programs. For example if a child is in an emotional state the other should not get into the same mode but be detached and say �it is ok�.� and what ever is appropriate. This is the kind of exercise with different situations the teachers need to expose the children to,as life skill aspects for social relations through role modeling.

                    Emotional strengths of � overcoming of fear�, �over coming of timidity� �overcoming of anger�, �over coming of inadequacy or inferiority �, �overcoming of attraction to unhealthy habits� are all possible to develop with a well planned regular program.

For example schools must include a �bottle breaking exercise� or �destroy drug exercise� and role model a walk �away from wrong habits� or �away from dangers�.It is then possible for the future of the young to be healthy and prosperous.

 Make them understand �

• Teenage behavior is a natural process with a tendency of curiosity, higher esteem, adventure and more capacity of resilience in the life cycle of any human
• Teenage is the onset of vital physiological changes
• The physiological changes include the production of reproductive hormones
• The teenagers need to understand that upon completion of 6 yrs the adult stage is reached from adolescence. From 13 to 19 we suffix �teen� while mentioning chronological age.
• Help them to accept the natural development in harmony. This is achieved only by preparing them to the natural changes, that happen to body, mind and spirit.
• Help them understand nothing weird is happening to any one. This is comprehended by them naturally when they are with their own age group.
• The role of elders comes into play to guide them with maturity. It is a very effective guidance when the care takers solve their concerns. The elders need to create a positive impact and help them perceive the teenage as a developmental process and accept it in a positive spirit.
• Such should be the guidance that it helps in an open communication by the teenagers if necessary.
• While the positive developmental attributes must be encouraged, the negative outcomes of too much of the same also needs to be addressed.
• An adventurous stage, a self assertive stage, an explorative stage of teenage is also a vulnerable stage. Life becomes a fun filled, trend/goal set, effort oriented and hard working stage towards a high standard adulthood with strong nurturing of teenage.

  Nurturing is to provide factors for desirable social achievements and removal of the factors that are detrimental to their progressive future.

  What the teenagers see, hear, experience and learn is to be associated with esteem and dignity.This helps them set higher goals to achieve and aim for a valuable adulthood.

  It is undoubtedly the responsibility of elders to create a program that makes the teenagers in their adolescence comprehend about the life�s changes and the onus towards their personality development as a shift from body consciousness to mind consciousness

  To summarize, associate the teenage emotions with esteem, sympathy and friendly manner.