Every year, summer break is the perfect opportunity for many families to reconnect and relax without school, homework and parent conferences getting in the way. But through all the traveling, vacations and beach days, summer seems to go by quicker than ever. As it comes to a close, parents around the country start to prepare for yet another school year ahead. Here are a few helpful points to help tackle this academic year.
Adjust bedtimes accordingly.
There is nothing worse than being consistently late because your child does not want to wake up early. Even though it feels right to give our little ones as much sleep time as possible, there is no avoiding the early hours during the school year. Enforce an appropriate bedtime before the year begins to ensure that your child is waking up at just the right time.
Maintain a positive “back to school” attitude.
If your child sees you dreading the start of school as much as they are, they will most likely start to lose interest before the year even begins. Getting them excited about learning will increase their motivation to do well and help them associate school with positive thoughts.
Take advantage of all the back to school deals.
Getting the right supplies for your child will be vital to their academic success and fortunately almost all of it is on sale! Not only will they be prepared to learn, but they will also get a heightened sense of organization that will make them feel ready to conquer the year!
Create a schedule that you and your child can reference.
At the start of the school year, it can be difficult to adjust to a new schedule. With young kids in particular, it can be hard to remember the times that they start school, go to lunch or get dismissed. Create a comprehensive, color-coded schedule and place it where you and your child can both visually reference it daily.
Create a list of goals for a successful school year.
Together with your son or daughter, write a list of goals and go through them at least once a week if possible. You can even create a mission statement highlighting the goals they hope to accomplish by a certain date and put it on the fridge or on the wall. Whether it is aiming for straight A’s or obtaining zero tardies all year, establishing a clear set of expectations will motivate them to achieve each of these goals during the year.
Discuss safety and after care.
These discussions are extremely important to have in this day and age, especially with young children. Ensure that he or she understands how they are getting home from school every day and who will be picking them up. Contact the school ASAP regarding how their dismissal process works and what to do if your child needs to partake in after school care.
