By Jennifer Chung, Kinsights.com
Summertime is filled with memory making opportunities. Time spent at the beach, picnics in the mountains, and traveling to visit out-of-town family and friends can cause us to forget the responsibilities and routines that await us in the fall. Summer ends all too soon and getting families ready for the school year is an essential part to the end of summer.
Create fun traditions that bring a close to summer and reduce kid’s anxiety as they prepare for the school year. Change the stigma that is attached to summer ending and school starting by trying these family friendly tips.
- Kids of all ages experience some degree of anxiety at the beginning of each school year. Whether you have a preschooler who is nervous about using the potty or a first-year middle school student who is nervous about his new schedule and having a locker. Taking time to discuss what they are anxious about will give you an opportunity to calm their nerves. Try some role-playing to help them express their fears and concerns while providing some well thought out solutions.
- Manage your own level of stress as the new school year begins. Kids will pick up on your anxiety level and begin to feel more anxious themselves. Use Labor Day weekend as your official goodbye to summer celebration. This can be your final getaway before you settle in to the school year routine. Whether you spend one final weekend at the beach or you camp in the backyard, make time to focus on family fun and building new traditions. Celebrate how the kids have grown over the summer and help get them excited for the challenges and activities they’ll participate in this year.
- Schedule doctors’ visits early for sports physicals and vaccinations. This is an excellent time to check eyesight and hearing to give your child every advantage in the classroom.
- Buy school supplies early so you’re not frazzled the week before school starts trying to pull together everything the kids need for their first day. Make shopping for school clothes more fun by taking several shopping trips over the summer. Take one child at a time and make each day special by going to lunch at their favorite restaurant.
- During summer vacation, kids typically don’t adhere to strict sleeping schedules. A couple of weeks before school begins, transition the kids into the habit of going to bed 10-15 minutes earlier each night and waking up 10-15 minutes earlier each morning until they are back on their normal sleep schedule. These small time adjustments will help them adjust to their new routine with ease.
- Talk about what the morning routine will look like once school starts. Lay out clothes for the next morning at bedtime the night before. Prepare school lunches in advance and set them out on the counter to grab-and-go as you leave each morning. Assign a regular place for homework and backpacks so you’re not rushing around each morning hunting for belongings before school.
- Set up a color coded family calendar. Once school starts, keeping track of everyone’s activities can be stressful. Mark important dates on the calendar like back-to-school night, parent-teacher conferences and school breaks. Calendar static events like sports practices and games at the beginning of the year to reduce scheduling conflicts.
- Parents get used to spending one-on-one time with their kids over summer break. Once school starts, finding one-on-one time can be a challenge. Make a commitment with your kids to spend at least one afternoon or evening each week just hanging out, playing games, or going for a walk. Spending dedicated one-on-one time with each child will give you the opportunity to evaluate how well they are adjusting to their new schedule, new friends, and new school faculty.
- Before school begins help your kids reconnect with old friends. Consider hosting an ice cream social in your backyard. Provide vanilla and chocolate ice cream with a variety of do-it-yourself toppings. Have games and play music. Allow plenty of time for the kids to get reacquainted and feel connected. Establishing connections before school starts helps relieve some of the social pressures to fit in with a new crowd at school.
- If your child is attending a new school, visit the school and walk the halls, find the restroom, the cafeteria, and the gym. Familiarizing your child with the new school layout before the first day will help reduce anxiety.
- Elementary aged kids have a fear of getting lost. If your child takes the bus, walk to the bus stop and show them where to locate the bus number and route number so they get on the correct bus. A practice run will make them feel more confident when school starts.
Planning ahead and being organized will ensure a happy successful school year. Keep communication open by discussing your children’s concerns before they become issues. Making family connections a priority will help your kids feel grounded, secure and confident to navigate through all of the experiences the new school year has in store for them.
About Jennifer Chung & Kinsights:
Jennifer Chung is a parenting expert and co-founder of Kinsights.com: part parenting community, part online health record. Kinsights provides parents with a safe place to seek answers to their questions while also helping them track their child’s health information. Organize your child’s growth and developmental milestones, immunizations, medications, allergies, and more. Connect with Kinsights at https://kinsights.com to learn more and sign-up! You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter (@kinsights).
