Q: My 6-year-old daughter has been going to school since the age of 3. She never wakes up early. She takes a lot of time, cries, shouts, screams and wakes up only after enough struggle. Even after waking up she takes about 25 minutes in the toilet. We keep telling her that she's getting late for school but she doesn't bother. If we make her understand things, she listens to it but repeats the same thing again. After all this, the only thing left is to scold her. I want her to understand these things. I have to explain everything to her. Otherwise she is a fine and smart girl. Her teacher says that she is a little distracted in class. She forgets what she did in class easily. Please guide.

A:Get your child assessed by a qualified psychologist or counsellor to rule out any attention deficit or cognitive problem. Children do find it hard to get up early in the morning to go to school but you should be firm and maybe wake her up earlier than usual to allow time for the toilet. Ensure that you are good models yourself and do not indulge in screaming or shouting too much.