46 Ways to Connect With Your Student

The best thing you can give your student is you! Your time, presence, and attention is critical to their wellbeing. Your shared experiences strengthen the bond and connection between you! Pour on the love and affection – providing secure connection points. Kids learn their sense of security, develop empathy for others and how to regulate their emotions from connection to their parent.

Every activity listed below (and hundreds more I didn’t list) help to deepen your relationship which creates and sustains security for them. Connection is the heart of the relationship between parent and child!

These statistics from this survey won’t surprise you:

80% of parents wish they had more meaningful conversations with their kids

36% of parents point to busy schedules hampering those conversations

71% of parents struggle to communicate meaningfully with their kids

78% said they felt “shut out” of their kids’ lives.

Families report these are their best times (and worst times) for “family time”  

31% At dinner time
29% In the evening
14% Weekend afternoon
7%   After school in the afternoon
5%   Weekend morning

SIMPLE WAYS TO CONNECT: 

1.     Eat your meal together – with 3 questions about the day: highs/lows/surprises

2.     Purchase a Lego kit and make it together

3.     Take a walk

4.     Read aloud – switching who is reading

5.     Cook a recipe together you’ve never made

6.     Set a routine together with their input

7.     Create a snack space and then shop to fill it up

8.     Build a fort

9.     Draw each other’s faces

10. Purchase age-appropriate coloring books and color together

11. Learn a new skill around box breathing

12. Apologize when you need too

13. Talk to them at eye level

14. Exercise together

15. Tell jokes

16. Allow them to make their own decisions

17. Disconnect from technology

18. Call them out for doing who they are – positive things only!

19. Investing your time and attention on things important to them

20. Create a plan for an outing/trip or meal together

21. Look at old photos together and reminisce

22. Listen without interrupting

23. Make intentional eye contact

24. Have a dance party

25. Be quiet together

26. Tell them a story about when you were little

27. Ask more leading questions… tell me more!

28. Give backrubs

29. Brush their hair (and let them brush yours!)

30. Pick flowers

31. Paint nails

32. Leave love notes for them

33. Hide special toys and give rewards for locating it

34. Drive to watch the sunset with a special snack

35. Show respect

36. Let the child decide the activity!

37. Plan and then plant a garden together

38. Take part in their play

39.  Don’t over complicate it!

40. Hold their hand

41. Sit closer

42. Take them on a date

43. Ride bikes together

44. Create a secret handshake

45. Smile often

46. Say “I like you” often (different from “I love you”)