Aug
31
Is Your Schedule Back to Normal Yet?
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Summer’s are hectic times for families, because usually your daily routines & schedules that are set in place during the school year are thrown out the window, and freedom reigns! :) Your children have gotten in the habit of going to bed and getting up later. Since school has started, it’s important to get children back on a school schedule or you will find a house full of grump kids and parents. Use these tips to get your family back into the swing of things.
Don’t wait too long to get them back in the habit of going to bed for school. In fact, it would be helpful if they started going to bed a little bit earlier each night, over a week, until they reach their normal “school night” bedtime. Children will rebel against having to go to bed so early if they’ve stayed up late all summer.
While you’re working on re-establishing a normal bedtime, you probably want to also get them up a little earlier each morning. This will help them acclimatize to the regular school schedule of going to bed a particular time and then having to get up in order to get ready for school. If you haven’t already done so, why not purchase an alarm clock and teach your child how to use it.
Instead of goofing off when they first wake up, have your children start getting ready as as they get up. Then let them relax before rushing off to school Before they go to bed each night, have them set out their clothes for the next day so everything’s ready for them when they rise.
What do you do if your child has to change classes during the day? Visit each classroom with your child, helping them find the quickest route between classes and other areas they’ll use. Your child will be a pro at maneuvering the halls in no time.
Will your child ride a bus, carpool with other children in the neighborhood, or will you take them to school each day? Knowing how they will get to and from school is important and will give them continuity to their day. This is particularly helpful if you have younger children.
Be prepared to get up earlier yourself, especially for the first few weeks. You’ll want to be up ensuring the children have everything and get ready in time. It’s not just children whose schedules are thrown off during the summer. Since it’s time to get back on your schedule when children go back to school, they’ll be on theirs as well.
Aug
7
Do you remember when you were in school? You could hardly wait for the school year to end and summer vacation to begin. The closer a new school year came, the more you had back to school blues. Your children probably feel the same way as the new school year is drawing near.
What can parents do to help with their children’s back to school blues? Here are some ideas of how to help your child prepare for the new school year that’s just around the corner.
1. A couple of weeks before school starts, begin to get them back on a “school night” schedule. Whatever schedule works for your family (in bed by 8 p.m. and up by 7 a.m., in bed by 9 p.m. and up by 7 a.m., etc.), begin to implement it in increments to get them used to going to bed earlier and getting up earlier for the school day.
2. Listen to your child’s concerns. Think about how you felt when you had to return to school. Acknowledge their fears when they first happen; don’t push them aside. Then talk things over with your child; tell them a story about when you were a child in the same situation.
3. If you’re allowed, go to the school a couple of days or weeks before school starts. Take your child on a tour of the different classrooms or areas in the school that they’ll spend time in. Meet the teacher if they’re available. Be sure to take them by the lunchroom, library, office, school nurse’s office (if there is one), and most importantly, the restrooms.
4. Have a “dry run” for getting ready each day for a few days before the first day of school. Plan to set everything out the night before just as they will be during the school year, and then have your child get dressed and ready to leave to see how things will work. This will also allow you to see if there are some areas of the morning routine that need to be tweaked to work better.
5. Create a special place for your child to do homework and leave their backpack so needed items are less likely to be lost. You may want to create a routine where you go through your child’s backpack with them each night, gathering any papers that need to be signed, assignments they need to do, and jot down any important dates on the family calendar.
6. Have a back to school blues-buster party. The night before school starts, plan a special meal, watch a favorite movie on DVD, and plan a back to school blues-buster dessert. Choose whatever will cheer up your child and give them a good feeling about the first day of school.
Your child is not the only one in the world to deal with back to school blues. It helps to talk things over, be prepared, and then celebrate the new beginning. You might find that you’re able to handle your own back to school blues better, too.