I do hope that 2023 has started well for all families in the Medbury community and that it has been a positive start to the school year, especially for those students and families who are new to Medbury.

If the start of the year has been a bit bumpy, or had its ups and downs, that is completely normal. It is important to make the time to listen to your son so that he knows you are here to support him. Please make contact with your son’s homeroom teacher if need be and they can also make contact with me to provide another level of support if that would be helpful.

As we look to the year ahead, I am sure that some families will have talked about New Year’s resolutions and for some, goal setting may be a family tradition which happens every year. For other families (mine included) the mention of goals or hopes for the year ahead may have been glossed over in favour of enjoying holiday activities and relaxation. It is never too late to think about the year ahead, or even to break it down into smaller time periods, such as the term or week ahead. Below is a list of ideas you might like to discuss with your son to help him think about how he would like to grow and develop. If your son is a little resistant to this kind of conversation, one of my 'go to' parenting lines at the moment is, “One of my roles as your parent is to challenge and support you to try things you have not done yet.”

Here are some possible ideas as you talk with your son about the year ahead. I would suggest just choosing a few that work for your son, or it may be that he builds on what he has done at school relating to goal setting. You could write them down and put them on the fridge or your son might like to create a poster for his bedroom wall. 

• Something new I would like to try this year is …

• Something I would like to do more of this year is …

• Something I would like to do less of this year is …

• Something I would like to get better at this year is …

• A new hobby I would like to try this year is …

• I would like to be a good friend this year by …

• I would like to help my family this year by …

• I would like to help my community this year by …

• I would like to be better at … this year.

I hope that this is helpful in making some plans for the year ahead and just the start of many conversations about how you can best support your son to positively challenge himself in 2023.

Image sourced from: https://www.freepik.com

Jenelle Hooson

Jenelle is a Registered Provisional Member with NZAC (New Zealand Association of Counsellors).

If you wish to discuss the services the School Counsellor can provide, please see your son’s homeroom teacher or Scott Johnson: scott.johnson@medbury.school.nz.