With school approaching for many and some already starting, here are 10 tips to help the year get off to a good start.
At Home
1. Bedtime Routine
This will be so important to start practicing before the first day. Getting to bed earlier, waking up earlier and having their clothes out the nigh before will be sure to help mornings run more smoothly. The sooner any routine is in place, the better all will be.
2. Back To School Fears
Talk about the upcoming school year. Go over the classes, the teachers and any other activities. This will help with the unknown feelings and allow for some of the anxieties to hopefully lessen.
3. Plan A “Schoolabration”:
If school has not started yet, make a date for something fun that your child will love to do in anticipation of school starting . Ice Cream , Put Put, anything at all that will bring a smile. If school has started, make it a date for the weekend! Making memories is a great way for children to feel safe and happy.
4. School Supplies
Be sure you have the items needed for the start of the school year. Stock up on some pencils, paper and crayons. It will help to ensure less stress when a last minute assignment comes up. If your child enjoys shopping, bring them with you and have them help pick out the colors and items they like.
5. School Bus
If your child will be taking the bus, set a time to see if you can meet the driver or plan to drive the route to take the element of the unknown away.
6. Visual Calendar or Story
Make a short story with pictures of the routine your child will be following. You can be as detailed as you like and include things like brushing teeth & breakfast or just include larger items like wake up at 7, bust at 745. Whatever works best for your child. We do one for every day and check mark as we progress to allow for a reward system at the end of the week.
At School.
7. Have A Communication Log
Set a way to communicate with your child’s teachers. A notebook/ journal, digital communication or weekly phone calls. Whatever it is that will work best for your family needs to be set so that you feel confident in the way the school gives and gets info. This can always be adapted or changed as needed.
8. Tour The School
Before the first day, go over and see the school. Even if it is not a new school- a reminder of the play area, or grounds and inside can be a nice way to have your child feel safe about where they will be going. The sights, smells and sounds will be important for them to have a sense of.
9.Meet The Teachers
If you can arrange to meet the teachers before the year starts, set that up. If not, try to plan a meeting within the first few weeks to have an idea of who your child is working with every day.
10. A “Meet My Child” Story
I did this last year and it was AMAZING! It is a one page Al About Me that we kept in his binder.
I supplied a picture of my son, a little about him and then things I though the teachers should know.
Things like:
he is a visual learner
he won’t ask many questions
he cannot tie his shoes
he transitions easily
For us, being in middle school meant lots of new teachers, this allowed them all to get a snapshot of him. I will be doing it again and will be sharing in another article.
School years bring such an array of emotions, keeping the communication open and remembering we know our child better than anyone are my two strongest points to get through the year! I hope these points help in some way and that we all have a year of progress for our child!