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As the new school year approaches, it is vital to take steps to get your child prepared. Whether you’re homeschooling or sending your child to a traditional school, the proper steps will put their mind at ease. The goal is to increase your child’s comfort while making sure they’re ready for all the new and exciting things they are going to learn on their newest educational adventure.
How to Prepare Your Child For a New School Year
Get Into a New Routine
Start by getting into a new routine. During the summer months, you may have allowed your little one to stay up later than usual and sleep in as late as they wanted to. Before starting a new school year, it is helpful to get your child into a new routine. The routine should consist of an earlier bedtime to ensure that your child gets enough sleep. While the exact time depends on your child’s age, along with other factors, a bedtime of around 8 p.m is ideal to guarantee that they are getting as much rest as they need.
Instead of allowing your child to sleep in until whatever time they want, you can start getting your child up at a specific time each day. It doesn’t need to be too early, but at least early enough to help your little one get familiar with getting up at an earlier time of the day. Once your child gets up, have them brush their teeth, get dressed, and get ready to eat breakfast. The new routine sets the tone for what the average school day will be like for your child.
Let Your Child Help With Picking Out School Supplies
Get your child interested and excited for school by allowing them to help pick out their school supplies. You may have dozens of items you’re planning to get, including a pencil case, scissors, markers, notebooks, even a book bag and new clothes. Rather than getting these items while you’re out by yourself, bring your child with you to check things out and pick up some items they like. Appaman has some great back-to-school looks that your kids are sure to love!
Your child will look forward to looking at all the different school supplies that come in various styles and colors before choosing which ones they like best. When a child picks out their supplies, it gives them something to feel excited about. It can even help relieve some of those nervous feelings that your child might have about going to school this year.
Talk to Your Child About What to Expect During School Hours
Make sure that you are talking to your child about what to expect during school hours. It applies to both homeschooling parents and non-homeschooling parents. If you plan to homeschool your child, you will need to go over the rules you will have during school hours. If you are planning to send your child to a traditional school, talk to them about the schedule they will have.
Most traditional schools will have a set schedule for children to follow. They will get time to read, write, do math, eat lunch, and possibly even get creative. The exact subjects covered will depend on your child’s age and the school they are attending. Even if you do not know how the schedule will turn out, you can still give your child an idea of what to expect while attending the school. There may be a mask mandate for students at their school, prepare them for this by practicing wearing a mask and even labeling their own masks and other school supplies with Mabels Labels personalized labels.
Bring Your Child to the School to Take a Tour Beforehand
While this doesn’t apply to homeschooling, it can help if you are sending your child to a school in the neighborhood. Request to take a tour of the school beforehand. If you can take a tour, you can show your child what the building looks like, where some of the rooms are, and where they will get to eat their food at lunchtime. There is always a fear of the unknown. However, you can make your child feel a lot better about attending a new school if you take a tour in advance to help them be more comfortable.
Final Thoughts
Take these different steps to prepare your child for a new school year. When you get your child ready for what they can expect when going to school, they will start to look forward to it. If you plan to homeschool, consider using the same suggestions but tweaked to accommodate your intended homeschool schedule.
I’d like to hear from you! How do you prepare your kids for a new school year? Let me know in the comments below!