Are you concerned about your child’s ability to manage stress? Are you unsure how to assist your child as he or she deals with anxiety? Use these tricks to train your child so he will know how to handle stress.

Teach him to go for a walk. By walking away, your child is actively resisting and choosing how to handle the stress. When your child is stressed out, he feels the adrenaline rush of fight or flight, which makes him want to run or fight. Teach your child to walk away; this alone is an empowering act because it teaches your child to physically remove himself from the situation. Then teach your child to walk or run until he feels better. The beautiful thing about teaching your child to use physical activity as a stress management tool is that it is an appropriate response for many childhood experiences (on the playground, at home, in gym class).

Teach your child how to express and deal with stress through the use of art. A lot of kids can’t talk about stress, but they can express themselves in pictures. Give your child some art supplies and do some art together such a “emotional painting”, where you paint a picture that depicts how you feel at the moment. Let your child’s creative juices flow without you asking too many questions or making suggestions. You might led by example and draw a cartoon strip about something that evokes emotion in you. Open up the topic for conversation, but don’t push anything.

Help your child learn the therapeutic power of the written word. Your child may expressing himself better through writing than talking. Buy a journal and start writing notes to your child in it each day, asking him to write back to you. Then, when your child is angry or sad, use the notebook to write him a note, asking how he’s doing. Use the journal to promote healthy venting and communication. Explore solutions through the notes passed back and forth – under the crack of the door, if necessary.

Take heart that you are teaching your children coping skills that will help them deal with stress for the rest of their lives.