The first day of school can be a time of chaos and stress or, with a little thought and planning, can be reasonably pleasant and for the most part move smoothly.
The trick is to start preparing now. Moving from the laid-back life of summer to heavily structured school days can be a real challenge. Kids are tired because they have gotten used to a later bedtime and slow mornings. All of a sudden we expect them to get to bed earlier and hop out of bed in the morning all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and organized for school.
Sit down now with the kids and talk about the school schedule. Remind them that bedtime will change and discuss how to handle lunches, backpacks and homework.
Bedtime can be the biggest hurdle. About a week before the first day of school, it’s a good idea to start sending them to bed earlier and plan some fun early morning activities so they need to get up and moving first thing in the morning. This will help them adjust their internal clocks to the school reality.
In terms of other considerations, this is the time to assess how the schedule worked last year. Ask the kids. What worked and what didn’t? How could the morning run more smoothly? What about lunches and all the stuff they need to remember to bring with them to school? If you make this a friendly conversation and listen to them they may have some great suggestions and because they are part of the planning process will want to make it work. If they come up with some ideas that you think are unworkable, try them anyway. You can say that you are not certain the idea will work, but how about you all try it for the first week and then assess on the weekend. If their plan doesn’t work and you need to make a change, resist saying or even thinking, “I told you so.” Instead, let them know that all ideas go through phases, and it’s a good idea to try new things. After all, if we didn’t experiment then all sorts of innovations would never have occurred.
If you have a child entering kindergarten, middle school or high school, celebrate this step toward independence. Don’t whine about how much you will miss them or how hard this is on you, or at least don’t do this in front of them. Remember, having a child who is ready for each step forward in his journey to adulthood is a testament to your good parenting.
Another challenge is the child who is really nervous. Reassure him that this is perfectly normal and then listen to his concerns. Don’t brush him off by saying he’ll be OK. He needs to be able to talk about his fears.
If your child had a bad time last year you can say something like: “Some years are more difficult than others. When that happens to me, I prefer to put it behind me and start the new year fresh.”
Acknowledge that it’s easier said than done, but ask her to give the new teacher a chance.
When your child is new to the school, remember that all students are new to the teacher. Give both teacher and child a few days to get acquainted and then decide if you need to speak to the teacher and let her know your child is new. Often children do better without our help. Talk to your child about making it in a new place and certainly welcome all her new friends in your home. You can even hold a party in the first few weeks and include the parents if possible.
And then there’s the shopping. You will need school supplies and clothing. I recommend that you put off the clothing shopping until school has started and your child sees what the styles are this year. What the kids were wearing last year may have changed.
Make sure that you take a look at your food shopping and stock the fridge with food that works well for school-day breakfasts, lunches and after-school snacks.
Then relax and enjoy this new school year.
Kathy Lynn is a professional speaker and author. Sign up for her informational newsletter at parentingtoday.ca.
