Do you ever feel like you and your child are speaking two different languages? If so, you aren’t alone. Many parents find it hard to communicate with their child. Even adults who work with children every day —teachers or coaches —sometimes need some communication tips. Many times adults confuse communication with telling a child what to do. Telling a child to do his homework or get more sleep isn’t real communication. It’s important information that your child needs, but it lacks an important part of communication. It’s lacking the two-way exchange of feelings and ideas, which is the point of true communication. Healthy communication is the key to helping your child develop a healthy personality and good relationships with you. It gives your child a chance to become a happy, safe, healthy person, no matter what happens. So you know it’s important, but how should you do it?

Effective communication between parents and children is not always easy. Children and adults have different communication styles and different ways of responding in a conversation. In addition, time and place can determine how successful communication will be. Parents should make time to talk with their children in a quiet, unhurried way. It’s also important that parents should be ready to listen whenever their child wants to talk, even if it’s an inconvenient time. The parents should be aware of their child’s facial expression and body language. Is your child nervous or uncomfortable —frowning(皱眉), drumming fingers, tapping a foot or looking at the clock? Or does your child seem relaxed? Is he or she smiling or looking at you in the eyes? Reading these signs will help you know how your child is feeling.

When you sleep somewhere else — like at summer camp or a friend’s house — you know you’re in for a fun time. It can be exciting to get away from the same old bed in the same old room in the same old house. But fun as this is, for some kids being away from home can be scary and sad. They want to go and have fun with their friends, but once they’re there, they start to miss their good old bed, their good old parents, and all that everyday stuff at home. It’s called being homesick (想家的).

Homesick means you’re upset, sad, and maybe scared. But don’t feel surprised. A lot of people get homesick, even grown-ups. When you’re used to having certain people and things around you, it can be scary when they’re gone. When you’re dealing with other problems, you will feel homesick, too. Some kids may feel more homesick than usual if their parents are getting divorced or if someone they loved has recently died.

Here are some ideas to help you feel less homesick.

Bring a little bit of home with you. If you’re going away from home, bring your pillow or pictures of the people you’ll be apart from and look at them any time you want.

Keep busy. The more fun stuff you do, the less time you’ll have to feel homesick. Try to join in activities wherever you are.

Stay in touch. You can make a plan for when you’ll call your mom or dad. You can also email or text message to stay in touch with family and friends. When you do get in touch with someone, make sure to talk about the fun things you’re doing!

Talk to someone where you are. Maybe you can tell a friend that you feel homesick. He or she might have some ideas to help you feel better.

Exciting screams of joy from two happy little girls rang across the beach. But I walked along, ignoring them. I’d come to this faraway beach on my sailboat, a place to escape. My marriage was in trouble. I worried about the harm to my two boys. But I didn’t know how to make things better.

“Help! Help!” The girls screamed. I saw one girl was at the edge of the surf, yelling. I charged into the waves, swam to her and seized her. “But where is the other girl?” I looked across the water and saw a small head after a big wave. I shifted the girl Td rescued to my back. She told me the other girl was her sister. For a moment I thought of my boys. How much they loved each other. How much I loved them.

I quickened my swimming and held the second little girl. We were at least 50 yards from land. I couldn’t swim that far with two girls hanging on to me. But there was no time to wait. I swam as hard as I could, but the weight of the girls grew heavier with every minute. My lungs burned. I opened my mouth to take a breath, but instead swallowed water. I couldn’t breathe. From behind me I felt an unbelievable force, lifting.

“Mommy!” The cry drew my attention. I looked up. An elderly man was trying to drag me out of the water. Two women were swimming toward shore. “Thank you,” one of the woman cried. “You saved my daughters.” My efforts and my struggles had paid off. I thought of that big wave, lifting me and pushing me. When my body had failed me, and when all hope was disappearing, I was given the strength I needed.

I stoop up. My family were waiting for me. There were things I could do. I just needed to make an effort. The strength would be given to me.