Are your kids looking forward to going back to school? Are they nervous about what the new school year will bring? Here are some tips parents can use to help prepare their child for going back to school.
Here are some Back to School tips from HealthyChildren.org:
Find another child in the neighborhood your child can walk to school or ride with on the bus. Children are generally ready to start walking to school at 9 to 11 years of age.
Make sure your child’s walk to school is a safe route with well-trained adult crossing guards at every intersection.
Point out the positive aspects of starting school to help your kids look forward to the first day of class. Talk about how they will see their old friends and meet some new ones, for example.
Consider starting your child on their school sleep/wake schedule a week or so ahead of time so that time change is not a factor on their first couple of days at school.
Choose a backpack with wide, padded shoulder straps and a padded back.
Remind your child to always use both shoulder straps. Slinging a backpack over one shoulder can strain muscles.
Remind your child to wait for the bus to stop before approaching it from the curb.
Make sure your child walks where she can see the bus driver (which means the driver will be able to see her, too).
If your child has a chronic condition that could result in an emergency on the bus, make sure you work with the school nurse or other school health personnel to have a bus emergency plan. If possible, do this before the first day of class.
All passengers should wear a seat belt or use an age- and size- appropriate car seat or booster seat while you are driving them to, or picking them up from, school.
All children younger than 13 years of age should ride in the rear seat of vehicles. If you must drive more children than can fit in the rear seat (when carpooling, for example,) move the front-seat passenger’s seat as far back as possible and have the child ride in a booster seat if the seat belts do not fit properly without it.
Studies show that children who eat a nutritious breakfast function better. They do better in school, and have better concentration and more energy. Some schools provide breakfast for children; if yours does not, make sure they eat a breakfast that contains some protein.
Most schools regularly send schedules of cafeteria menus home and/or have them posted on the school’s website. With this advance information, you can plan on packing lunch on the days when the main course is one your child prefers not to eat.
Many children qualify for free or reduced price food at school, including breakfast. The forms for these services can be completed at the school office. Hunger will affect a child’s performance in class.
Related Articles on Families.com:
Seattle Schools Later Start Time Benefits Teens
Get Ready For The New School Year
Ways to Cope With The “Homework Gap”