Many parents going through divorce choose, or are told to attend parenting classes. Often, this can be a shock, or even feel like a personal insult. However there are a lot of reasons to attend a parenting class during a divorce. And it does not mean you are not a good parent. Here are a few reasons to attend a parenting class during a divorce.

Learn methods to help your kids cope with the divorce.

During divorce, it’s easy for kids to feel caught in the middle. It’s not far from the truth – they have no ability to make decisions about how the divorce affects them. Parenting classes help you learn about the emotions your child will experience and help you deal with them effectively. You also may pick up pointers on observing your kids’ behavior to understand how they’re feeling and managing the news. Even good parents can pick up divorce-specific information in these types of classes.

Gain skills to co-parent after your marriage ends.

Parenting classes can provide you an idea of what life will look like as two parents in two separate households. This process can be stressful, but classes can prepare for the physical and emotional stress of parenting after divorce. You will learn what issues you may face as single parents. A few examples include:

• Contributing to your child(ren)’s expenses
• Managing your schedule
• Communicating and staying on the same page as co-parents

Get tools to manage conflict with your ex and communicate effectively.

Conflict is unavoidable at times during divorce. Having the right tools to manage that conflict helps you prevent it from spilling over to harm your children. Parenting classes will give you methods for conflict resolution so you don’t use your kids as a sounding board about fights, or as a message passer between parties. You’ll be able to fix issues without involving your children at all, ideally. This promotes a healthy environment for everyone, your children, ex, and you.

In some cases a Judge may require you to attend.

Some counties have a mandatory requirement that you attend parenting classes for all divorces. Others offer it optionally, and some order it on a case-by-case basis. If you are ordered to attend, you won’t be able to finalize your divorce until you do so. Most counties offer an online option to take the class to make it easy and accessible to do so.

Reasons to Attend a Parenting Class During a Divorce.