Imagine stepping into high school where you need to balance academics, friendships, and relationships with parents and also feel happy throughout. That does sound daunting! With many things to do at once, it is inevitable to experience some stress in different areas of life.
Whether you are exploring an interesting topic of history with your peers or discussing your career with your parents, there can be situations where it does not work as per your wish. That’s exactly when stress hits your mind and body. However, it is important to know that stress can be positive or negative. When you feel stressed before exams only to perform better is positive. However, when peer pressure, expectations of parents, or complicated relationships make you feel anxious, that’s negative.
To understand the impact of stress on high schoolers, it is important to intervene and extract details. The best way to do so is to conduct a stress survey for high schoolers. A stress survey is an essential tool used for assessing the stress level. It helps identify triggers so you can arrive at a viable coping mechanism for high school students. In this article, we shall discuss various questions that help with identification and intervention.
A stress survey creates a sense of responsibility for schools to analyze the impact of stress on a student’s personal and academic life. Therefore, it is crucial to have an elaborate survey that specifically targets different areas of everyday life. The below-mentioned questions are classified into various categories to help arrive at accurate solutions for handling stress.
High schoolers go through different emotions in an entire day. Hence, it is important to start the survey with basic questions that focus on everyday happenings and the environment. It ensures a smooth start and that’s how students feel comfortable answering the questions. The below-mentioned questions tap into everyday living considering the effects of internal and external environments.
As high schoolers build relationships with teachers, it is important to understand how often they feel heard and cared for. Questions based on student-teacher relationships directly reflect the necessary changes required in teaching and communication styles. The below-mentioned questions focus on understanding and analyzing the impact of teachers on the stress levels of students.
Parents shape a child’s mind from the initial stages and have a long-lasting effect on how individuals perceive themselves. Parent relationships play a major role in triggering or lowering stress considering their involvement in the student’s life. The below-mentioned questions help analyze the areas where parents might require an improvement or change to benefit the student’s overall development.
Friends are truly important throughout the academic journey as they become an integral part of our lives. While some friends can be beneficial, some might also create a sense of competition and insecurity in students.
It is therefore significant to understand the impact of peer relationships on stress. The below mentioned questions analyze various aspects of peer relationships thereby helping teachers create a more inclusive learning environment.
Stress experienced in different circumstances plays an important role in shaping our lives and how we perceive them. It is thereby vital to help high school students understand the concept and offer practices for healthy living. The below-mentioned techniques are general and can create a positive impact when applied correctly.
Stress can get really tiring if the right practices are not applied at the right time. It is important for high schoolers to indulge in mindfulness through yoga or meditation. As the mind enters into a calm zone, students are more likely to feel positive. Deep breathing and relaxation through meditation only help with a less blocked brain. It also helps clear the clutter and focus on the present.
When targets are not met our goals are not achieved, and stress becomes pretty normal. You need to include time management activities and also teach the benefits of managing time practically. Students can better have self-time only when classwork and projects are completed on time. Time management also encourages discipline thereby helping students set realistic goals.
Did you know sleep plays an important role in the everyday functioning of the body? Students might spend time on their mobiles at night neglecting the ill effects. Encourage them to sleep for a maximum of 8 hours to feel fresh during the mornings. A night of quality sleep also benefits the other body functions thereby ensuring a healthy lifestyle with less stress. Motivate students to take a walk or exercise to keep the body activated.
How often do we need to tell ourselves that we can do it? Positive self-talk is all about encouraging yourself and predicting happiness when you get it done. Always motivate students to talk to themselves by looking in the mirror or practicing journaling. It helps control stress as they build a positive environment through self-talk.
Food decides the mood. It is indeed true as food that goes inside the body affects bodily functions. Extreme consumption of junk leads to an unhealthy body that doesn’t like to exercise, jog, or even keep moving. That’s when stress hits the body and mind. Teach students the benefits of healthy eating or indulge them in light-hearted nutrition games to create awareness.
A stress survey is an important measure to analyze, understand and learn about the stress levels of students. It not only ensures a healthy learning environment but also creates a sense of safety in high schoolers. When students get an opportunity to talk about their problems through a survey, they are more likely to experience a secure environment.
Including games and activities along with encouraging words for students also helps in strengthening relationships. As you help students with the right coping skills, self-reflection activities, and stress management techniques, you are leading them in the right direction for a promising future.
Having a 10+ years of experience in teaching little budding learners, I am now working as a soft skills and IELTS trainers. Having spent my share of time with high schoolers, I understand their fears about the future. At the same time, my experience has helped me foster plenty of strategies that can make their 4 years of high school blissful. Furthermore, I have worked intensely on helping these young adults bloom into successful adults by training them for their dream colleges. Through my blogs, I intend to help parents, educators and students in making these years joyful and prosperous.
