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Boarding Schools: The Antidote to Outsourced Parenting

Boarding School & Mindfulness

Mindfulness matters at every age. Boarding schools provide the support teens need to start healthy habits — for their bodies and minds — early.

There’s nothing more American than branding the strategies, tools and decisions that parents are forced to make each and every day. From the way newborns are fed to the schools and extracurriculars you choose, it’s easy to feel scrutinized. More and more parents are turning to others to show them the way via the aptly named notion of “outsourced parenting.”

The need to do more with less — less time and fewer resources — has mandated that parents become more efficient. There’s an app for everything you need, from carpooling and meal planning to help with homework. For most parents, this is a welcome aid when you’re so frequently required to be in multiple places at once. When does it become too much? When does the outsourcing create an insurmountable illusion that you’re simply not doing enough for your children yourself?

“The need to do more with less — less time and fewer resources — has mandated that parents become more efficient.”

You’ll do whatever you need to support your children’s growth and development, but who has time to be the math tutor, SAT prep guide, lacrosse coach, ballet instructor, college adviser or (and!) youth group leader? As your children approach high school and the years most crucial to setting them up for success in all areas of their future lives, there is no doubt you want to do what’s best for them. With increasing pressure and decreasing time, what’s the solution?

Boarding schools offer the antidote to a complicated, piecemeal compilation of outsourced parenting responsibilities. Instead of trying to vet the right people from whom you can trust your precious offspring will learn, boarding schools offer the best of the best, in one safe and supportive environment.

“Instead of trying to vet the right people from whom you can trust your precious offspring will learn, boarding schools offer the best of the best, in one safe and supportive environment.”

Boarding schools have long been lauded for their ability to truly cultivate well-rounded young women and men — preparing them to enter college and real life with all of the skills they’ll need. Autonomy is encouraged, independence is imperative, and support is plentiful. The combination of world-class academics, impassioned professors and mentors and incredible litany of extracurricular activities elevates the boarding school experience, of course, but the true difference is the ability to find all of this in one place. When you don’t have to worry about how you’re going to get your child to ballet or whether he’s prepared for a calculus exam, you’re free to strengthen your parental bond in more important ways.

“…the true difference is the ability to find all of this in one place.”

To be clear, there isn’t anything wrong with outsourced parenting. Asking for and finding help when you need it is an important life skill — one which you can demonstrate to the young minds you’re raising by choosing the right things to outsource. Finding the right boarding school for your child allows you to shift your focus from logistics to forming a relationship that will segue into adulthood.

Outside of your home, boarding school is the second best place for your child to grow, mature and acquire unparalleled confidence, while you cheer them on as their parent: not their Uber driver, project manager or 24-hour laundry service. Ready For More? Sign up to receive helpful articles like this right to your inbox, or explore boarding schools near you.

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