Creative Child September 2020 | Page 38

CREATIVE HIGHLIGHT A study conducted by the American Psychological Association revealed children reported feeling higher levels of stress on average across the school year than adults. One of the biggest contributors to our kids’ stress are the obsessive focus on grades. Grades have become so important to a child’s future success that schools now focus more on training kids to pass exams and get good grades than on helping kids understand the course material. But if we are to truly raise the next generation of innovators we need to focus on inspiring our children to learn for reasons beyond good grades. 37