The Effects of a Broken Home in Children

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The effects of a broken home in children I used to think, before I became a teacher, that teenagers were easier to treat than younger kids. Couldn´t be farther from the truth. I have been blessed with two beautiful children, the eldest, Abril is a model child, she is well behaved, intelligent, kind, educated, articulate and beautiful. The youngest, Ernesto, is a menace, he is still a toddler and God knows what is it that he wants, not even himself know that. However I thought this was the toughest stage in life, regarding motherhood, but I was so wrong… Now that I am a teacher I know for sure the worst stage is yet to come. Dealing with difficult adolescents is extraordinarily challenging, not only for parents but also for the teachers. Therapists are aware of the effect of divorce and/or broken homes can have on the child´s learning potential as well as school behavior. In fact teachers can generally predict an evolving divorce based on observation of the student´s school performance. Although children experience divorce and separation differently, the one constant that should be addressed are the child´s feelings of abandonment, mistrust and symptoms that define the emotions of an attachment disorder, factors that also seriously affect school learning. According to researchers, divorce affects secure attachments, which could have a negative impact on behavior in childhood and throughout the life of a child. For example, children diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), conduct disorder (CD) or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) frequently display attachment disorders (trust), due to abuse or trauma which can be caused by separation or divorce. The emotional stress of a divorce alone can be enough to stop the child´s academic progress, but the lifestyle changes and instability of a broken family can contribute to poor education. However, this poor

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