Walt Ham :
Understanding is the key to determining the right age to put your child to a boarding school. There could be many factors that determine the right age to put your child to a boarding school.
Are you comfortable with what you are doing?
Let’s assume that you have reached the decision of putting your child in a boarding school. Also assume that your child is between 4 to 10 years of age. You go and leave your child in the boarding school and then you come back home. How is your child going to feel all alone without you for the first time? At such a young age? Can you picture the scene and the emotions at play over here? Perhaps when you reach home after having left your child, you may find yourself in tears and regretting your decision.
Is it a case of discipline?
Do you want to put your child in a boarding school so as to discipline your child? How old is your child? 4 years? 7 years? 10 years? Perhaps you or your spouse or both of you have determined that it would be best to put your child in boarding as your child is in need of discipline.
Maybe both of you feel that by doing so, this is going to benefit the kid. So are you sure you are sending your child away at the right age and for the right reason?
What is the right age to put your child to a boarding school?
The answer to this can really be very tricky. There are so many factors that come into play. One of the prime factors responsible for taking such a decision would be – You! You need to ask yourself – “Do I really want to do this? Is this the right age for my child for me to take such a decision?”
You also need to answer whether your child is at the age where he or she can take care of his or her own emotional needs without you. Whether your child can stay without the sense of security that he or she can get when being with you? Being hugged by you, being taken out by you, being near you…is your child the right age to be deprived of all this?
What is the right age?
Your child needs to be able to understand why he or she is being sent to boarding school. Your child needs to understand that he or she is not being shunned by you. Your child needs to understand that you are doing it for his or her own good.
When your child understands all this, this is the right age to put your child to a boarding school.
