It’s that time of the year! No, I’m not talking about the holidays…it is Exam time for our college kids. The end of the semester brings our college kids a boatload of papers, projects and the dreaded exam week. Unless your student happens to be on a trimester schedule, the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are probably the most stressful of the entire academic year for our kids. In addition to academics, many will also have a social component to their schedule. Fraternities and sororities usually have holiday dances or parties. If your student is involved in sports, they may still have playoff games on their calendar. If they are involved in any campus ministries, this is a time of volunteer efforts like food drives. Their schedules are usually jam-packed during these final weeks before winter break
It takes some solid coping skills, good organization and time management skills, as well a big dose of support from Mom and Dad to help get through these last weeks! Parental support can be key during these weeks. Sometimes the stress manifests itself as homesickness. They usually have just been home for Thanksgiving and get back to school after a great long weekend, only to be hit head on with the end of semester realities. Don’t downplay their feelings; with all that they face in a short period of time, this can be an overwhelming time. So return their calls and emails right away. If you haven't learned to text message yet.. now is the time. It seems to be the most popular form of communicating for college kids. Have your college student show you how over the Thanksgiving break. Do a quick check of your cell phone plan and make sure you have a text allowance.. if not, add one. A quick daily text is a great way to check in with the kids.
What can you do to help? Be there to encourage them. Suggest they put together a schedule for the next few weeks so that they can use their time to the best advantage.
If they are having a writer’s block on a paper, offer to read through their rough draft and see if you can give them a jump-start. Sometimes a simple objective look at their work will give them the reassurance that they are on the right track. Most campuses also have centers where advanced level students will help with papers. You could suggest a visit there. Usually they will need an appointment, so encourage them to get the rough draft written early and get on the appointment docket. It will also help them avoid waiting until the last minute. Waiting until the night before to study, write a paper, and finish a project is a sure recipe for high stress. Freshmen, in particular, seem to have the most difficult time juggling all that is expected, so be prepared!
Aside from keeping the lines of communication open and making sure they have a place to call when they are feeling overwhelmed, you can also show your support through a care package. You will be receiving mailers from the residence halls in the next week or so offering exam care packages for sale. These are pretty generic in nature and usually costly. Why not take some time and put together a fun “break from the craziness” package. Get it put together and off to your student early. You want them to be able to enjoy it. Over the years, we have done this for our four. I usually come up with a theme for these packages, anything from a movie marathon to a barbeque in a box! From past experience with my own four, I can tell you the more unique the package, the bigger the smiles that are generated! Whatever you send, be assured they are all are greeted with enthusiasm. At University of Michigan, my son and his crew nicknamed me “M Go Mom”, a takeoff on the school’s tagline “M Go Blue”. This was the result of the creative and fun care packages I would send to them. If you would like to see some specific examples of creative care package themes, with step by step instructions, I have shared them at Celebration Ideas Online.. So start planning early to send a package that will share your love and support with your college student during the upcoming end of semester weeks.
