All of the supplies filling the aisles of stores, and social media posts about the back to school season is becoming very exciting. However, the supplies and the book bags are not the most important things to think about when preparing for your child’s coming school year. Here are a few things to add to the list of important Back 2 School “items”.
Schedules and routines
For many of us summer means later bedtimes, more outside and tech time, and a looser schedule. Typically about 1-2 weeks before school begins it is a great time to set school routines back in motion. This may even look like a complete overhaul of your previous year’s routines. Remember there’s never a better time to initiate or start something new than the changing of a season or a shift such as going back to school. Working for a few weeks on a new schedule and routine will help beat those early morning blues on the first few days of school. Setting up new bedtime routines and times is one of the most important things. Children require a lot more sleep than I ever thought they did, So ensuring that your children are getting the adequate amount of sleep for their age will help them wake up more refreshed and be able to withstand the longevity of a school day. Aside from bedtime, other routines may include structuring in reading time or revamping chore schedules. This is not a one size fits all approach because for parents of children involved in sports, schedules look a lot different as well. Remember what works best for your family is what matters most.
Setting the tone for parent/teacher connection
I talked about this in a recent podcast with Chesapeake Family Life (linked here). As a fellow parent and educator I can’t stress enough, the relationship and communication between school and home is a pillar for success. A lot of times parents don’t know how to initiate this communication and relationship. Also, some teachers don’t know how to initiate or strengthen this communication and relationship. With boundaries in place parents and teachers can communicate frequently and in various different ways. It is imperative to let the teacher know, or let the parents know if you are an educator, that you would like to have open lines of communication in order to support your child’s learning in the classroom setting. There are various platforms this can be done through such as Google Voice, Class Dojo, virtual classroom platforms, or even sharing a text messenger app. Regardless of the preferred style of communication it is your right as a parent to let the teacher know you would like to be informed of things going on with your child, you would like to be kept abreast of changes and other things happening within the classroom and school, and you are willing to communicate whatever way is suited best for both of you.
I understand, raising a child that is in need of more communication between parent and teacher, that sometimes we feel we want a daily update. In reality a daily update is a hard thing to keep on top of For an educator with a large class. So be open minded and optimistic with this approach and your expectations of communication with the teacher. Nevertheless, do not be discouraged or worried about requesting more frequent or specialized communication. This isn’t something to just tick off a box, it is a way that you can show the teacher that you are bought in on the learning process, and you are modeling for your child that you are an integral part of their learning experience.
Discussing Goals
Your child, at any age, is a relevant person in a goalsetting conversation. You and your child should sit down and discuss some goals for the coming school year. If your child is going to be new to school their goals maybe simple like meeting friends or learning letters. If your child is a returning student maybe they have goals that can be connected to previous grades or classroom behavior. Setting goals and monitoring the achievement of them is a great tool for success for children of any age. This can be something as simple as a conversation or as elaborate as creating a goal map or vision board. Setting the tone for a positive school year Will help build strong connections, a positive outlook, and an eagerness to learn and meet these goals. Framing the school experience in the coming school year as a wonderful opportunity to accomplish new tasks and things will surely help your I children focus on learning and the positive outcomes that school can provide. If you set goals be intentional about making the child a part of the process which will include choosing what goals they want to set. Also, be intentional about referring back to the goals and reviewing them periodically. This one still in your child the value of that only establishing goals, but also reflection and adjustment.
Conclusion
I understand that back to school time can be a time with a vast array of emotions involved. Some of us are sending our babies to school for the first time and are nervous, some of us are sending our kiddos to college for the first time and we are joyfully saddened. This is a time to try and re-purpose our view on what the back to school season is. This is a time for some changes in shifts, but also a time for setting new goals and reflections. I always loved picking out a book bag and fresh new supplies when it was my turn to go back to school, but I understand now there are more important things to focus on then the handy-dandy supplies.