As everyone gets into school mode, the last bits of summer bliss are still fresh in our minds. The children who attended sleep away camp are still fresh with stories of newly made friends, the excitement of Color War, and exhibit a little bit of the independence they achieved while away at camp. The high schoolers that went on trips of excitement and expansion have stories, photos and are eager to catch up with their friends from home.
In either case, the shift back to home life and soon to be school life is a struggle for everyone. The return of the daily routine is around the corner. Get ready!!
So what can you do to help the entire family shift?
-
Bedtime. Since sleep is of utmost importance, you want to make sure your family is getting enough in preparation for the start of school. But in reality, and I don’t care how strict of a parent you may be, it is tough to go from the looseness of summer to the controlled routine of the school year. So, you have to gradually get into the swing of things. Set the bedtime about 15 minutes earlier each night until you are back on “School Standard Time”. But alas, don’t be hard on yourself or your kids. Everyone will be tired on Monday morning.
-
Start making the school schedule spreadsheet. Every member of the family gets to participate. The first part is time to arrive at school and time it ends. And from there, you work backwards as you plug in the “musts” and the “wants”. Click here to get a copy of a simple school prep calendar.
-
Preparing the workspace for school studies. Every school will typically provide some kind of office supplies store list of needs ie the completely necessary “red pencil”. Purchase as much as you can in advance and get the kids in on the action. Let them select the notebook of their dreams — a small expense for some independent expression. Make sure this year’s backpack fits your child and has the storage needed for all of their supplies, but not too much so that “stuff” gets lost at the bottom.
-
Set some smart goals for the year. Help your children identify some goals as well as action plans that have the following characteristics. They are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time Bound. For example, if the goal is to Earn Better Grades and in evaluation, it appears as if homework was a problem, you may want to help your child with the following goal:
-
During the first marking period, I will complete my homework during the hours of 6 to 7 p.m. on school nights at my desk in my bedroom. After completing my homework, I will put my homework in a homework folder and put it in my backpack. At school the next day I will turn in my homework to my teacher. I will revise this goal after receiving my first marking period report card.
-
This stated goal meets all the criteria listed above and can be easily scheduled in your planner in #2.
-
Get set the night before. And make this a daily routine. Clothes picked out, alarms set, homework in backpacks, lunches made, activity list reviewed, paperwork completed. Not only will getting set the night before help in the morning rush, but it will also help for a better night sleep for everyone.
And mom and dad, the most peaceful time of the day is usually before the kids get up to get ready for the morning. I don’t know about you, but I always got up well before the kids, do my stretches, prepare breakfast, MAKE THE COFFEE, and shake off the sleepy grumpiness so I can help my kids start the day with a happy start. And I always ate breakfast with the kids. The old — monkey see, monkey do!
Good luck with the prep and the first days back to school. Please share your tips and ideas for getting ready for the first day.