simone
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Joined: 23 Jul 2005
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 Posted: 01/03/07 - 06:27 Post subject: Preparation helps children avoid homesickness when away |
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Many children, especially those who have never spent a night away from home, often feel homesick when sent to camps or even hospitals or post-secondary studies.
As much as 90% of the kids feel homesick to some extent when attending camps for the first time. One in fourteen gets so intense that it interferes with their daily functioning in the camp. Their thoughts become preoccupied with home to the extent that they cannot sleep or eat. Similar situation occurs in older children who went away to study without previously being away from home.
Pediatricians say that this homesickness could be prevented if parents prepared their children for staying away from home.
Some of the copying strategies include telling children that feeling homesick is perfectly normal, practicing spending nights at relatives, encourage them to write letters or talk to the camp counsellors if they feel homesick, etc
So, parents and physicians should be in charge of prevention and preparing children for separation while camp directors, boarding school staff, hospital specialists and others should treat homesickness if it occurs. |
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