In my experience as a Austin divorce lawyer, I have learned that there is no more challenging issue for families than the impact of divorce on the children that are involved. Although children may have experienced trauma as their parents grew apart, the major impact of such a life-changing event becomes even more pronounced when the separation is final.
You can learn more about some of those life changes by watching our free seminar about divorce in Austin. Adults in the life of the child become very important as sources of understanding, love, support and caring. Teaches and TA’s are the adults most commonly associated with kids on a regular basis in a school. This short article provides some guidance and information for educators working with children from divorced families.
Teachers should be the first to notice as changes at home start to effect kids. Unfortunately, many teachers focus solely on the benchmarking and testing required by No Child Left Behind. Some teachers have started to focus on the process itself instead of the needs of the kids in their charge.
Next, it’s important for teachers to find out what resources the community has available to children living in a home with divorce. Those range from after-school programs for single parents who are the sole wage earner to financial resources that will provide assistance with the cost of child care.
Third, administrators and teachers should be in favor of counselors, therapists and other social workers who can help children that may be dealing with divorce in their home. Since children the majority of each weekday at school, this is the natural location for behavioral health services and related social supports.
Most importantly, educators need to set aside time to listen to the newly single parent in parent-teacher conferences and other meetings where one-on-one contact with the parent is possible. Parents can use this time with their child’s teacher to learn about what’s going on with thier child, what’s working and what’s frustrating them.
Kids can develop emotional problems and attachment issues if some of the changes they’re facing aren’t dealt with in the early stages. We understand this need and attempt to minimize the impact to children by using collaborative divorce in Austin. Teachers have the ability to give support and sometimes intervene when children and their newly single parents may need it most. Teachers today have a key action step by creating opportunities for conversations with kids and paying attention to changes in them.