Communicating with your child's teacher is one way to help him succeed at school. But just how often should you contact the teacher，and what questions should you ask？How can you help your child succeed in school？

Jerry Parks，a social studies teacher is. to share his thoughts. Parks keeps in touch with parents through emails，class websites，and phone calls. " Parents who take an active interest in their children's work and school well-being are one of the biggest contributors to my students' success，"Parks says. Children of involved parents typically have higher self-esteem（自尊）and have fewer behavior problems in school. And students' grades usually improve when their parents become involved.

Parks suggests the top 6 ways parents can help their children succeed in school: first，make sure your child is at school every day possible. Missed work is generally more of a loss than made-up work is a gain；second，set a time and a place for your child to do homework. If he does not have homework，have him use the time to read；third，keep in touch with teachers，but don't do it too much. Most teachers appreciate parents caring enough to keep in touch a few times a term but do not appreciate parents expecting to contact on a regular basis. Besides，it seems appropriate to ask the teacher whether she thinks your child is giving his best effort in class and whether she has noticed any significant changes in your child's behavior or grades. More importantly，teach your child to build a character—it will improve social and academic skills more than anything else. Some things are simply wrong，and the world your child will grow up in will punish crimes，so give your child a head start. Last but not least，make time every day to talk with your child about the day's activities. Let him know you care，and really listen to what he has to say.

   Fights at school have become an increasingly familiar sight for children. You should know what to do if you are in a fight, or see a fight at school. 【小题1】

You should try to get away if you can. If you know someone is coming up behind you to attack, turn toward the person with your hands up in front of your body and loudly say “stop” before walking away. 【小题2】 If the person doesn’t stop, cry for help by calling out the name of a teacher whose office is nearby.

【小题3】 In some school areas, everyone involved in a fight can be punished, no matter who started it.

What should you do if you see a fight? You mustn’t jump in to break up a fight or help a friend. If you get involved in a fight，you may suffer injuries and punishment. 【小题4】 It’s a good choice to find an adult or call the police. Shout loudly to break up the fight or warn that an adult is coming.

【小题5】 It only provides temporary（临时的）relief for the attacker and causes more trouble. If you are concerned about fights at school, the best thing you can do is talk to an adult who will listen and take action.

Planning is good as it decides in details how we do what we want to do it. However, a plan bears no fruit without being actual carried out. My experience in the English speech contest last month was a case in point. A month before the event, I spent hours work out a schedule with my goals and practical steps. After that, I set out read widely for an inspired topic , wrote a speech, and practised my pronunciation with good public speech skills. I finally stood out as a first prize winner. I know why I achieved my success. It came from good planning but better practice.

   Do teenagers know how to sleep? If you’re the parent of teens, you might be laughing to yourself. That’s all they know how to do. In truth, teens might not know enough about how to sleep, when to sleep and why.【小题1】 .

Just as we focus on our diets and exercise for health, we need to consider sleep necessary to our mental, physical and psychological health. “Good” sleep is sleep that is long enough to allow your brain to remove the side effects of daytime brain activity. Consistent bed times and wakeup times are the key to keeping our sleep cycles.【小题2】.

Teens are social creatures, and the most attractive social “gathering” place these days is on their digital devices.【小题3】. Ideally, we should avoid blue light for at least half an hour before bed. But social media and homework that requires screen time mean too many kids are powering up their devices when their bodies should be powering down for the night.

【小题4】. Equally contributing to sleep issues are eating too late, taking naps, and failing to get enough exercise. In other words, these people never learned how to sleep.

Over time, poor sleep leads to a decline in mood.【小题5】. Significantly, when I speak to my adult patients who are struggling with sleep issues, nearly all of them say their sleep problems started in high school.

Therefore, I recommend sleep education. Otherwise, we won’t necessarily solve the health, safety and economic issues of sleepy teens.

What to Do when Someone Doesn’t Like You

When someone tells me, “I don’t care if people like me,” they are showing me the emotional wall they use to block the hurt of rejection.

As humans are social animals, all of us care if people like us. Based on the need for social connections, your reactions to rejection and negative judgment can range from minor hurt to breakouts of depression. 【小题1】

The first step to handle a negative situation is to recognize your reaction. Ask yourself, “What am I feeling?”. 【小题2】 Any betrayal (背叛) or embarrassment in your heart? Identify what feeling has shown up in your body, so you can choose what to do next.

【小题3】 When you sense yourself being shut out or feel defensive, ask yourself what the person actually means to do to you. Does he truly mean to offend you, or make fun of you? Your brain works very hard to keep you safe, so it will judge a situation threatening if there is any possibility of social harm.

When our brains sense a possible threat, we react as if we were personally attacked. Take a breath to relieve (减轻) the stress. 【小题4】

Finally, if you believe the person doesn’t like you, ask yourself if this matters. 【小题5】 If not, what can you do to release your need to be liked by this person? And, what can you do to stay neutral and not return the dislike? The more you can come to accept others as who they are, the more you can move forward with your goals regardless of whether someone likes you or not.