Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would push back against the idea that you want an unusually well behaved, compliant peer group. I can see how very boisterous would be stressful for her. But it’s actually important for her to see that mistakes aren’t the end of the world and be able to cope with unexpected behavior—and see that everyone else can too. My anxious kid’s therapist was always pointing out that the kid needs to see things “go wrong” and then be fine. That is how she will learn to reassure herself.

We found something similar with our DC. It might not be the easiest path from day one, but I can say at least from our experience that learning how to adjust to new people, make mistakes, and get up after you fall ultimately worked wonders for our anxious DC--who is now far less anxious.

DC was supported, and challenged (ultimately in this good way), at BVR.

Anonymous wrote:The River School. My anxious kid loves it. And the non-anxious kid loves it too.

Anonymous wrote:This may be an unpopular opinion, but what about GDS? We have a shy, fairly anxious child and everyone vehemently steered us away from GDS saying it was too unstructured etc. But our 6 year old LOVES it. They are very nurturing and honestly I’ve found them to be incredibly structured!!

Anonymous wrote:We did play-based progressive school for our anxious youngster and whilst the anxiety was kept at bay at school, they didn’t learn much at all nor track well versus the rest of the class. We had to ask around to find that out. By 6th grade, it created anxiety due to being behind or in pullouts.

I think the best way to quell anxiety is through confidence, support and skill building. Not by avoiding work, tests or competition.

Anonymous wrote:Our anxious child has made tremendous progress while at NPS. It's a comforting and safe environment, and the teachers and administration could not have been more helpful and supportive.