photo by rober

School is almost here again!  I start to feel the anxiety somewhere about the middle of July.  This year I will have a 4th grader and a kindergartner – wow!  With the school year starting again there can be a lot of mixed feelings about going back. 

Your child can start to feel anxious and nervous, scared or excited and they may or may not express these feelings to you.  Here are some tips to get them off to school feeling a little better about starting a new year, or if you have a child who is ready to go back to school by the second week of June, some tips to help them put their best foot forward.  It also can give us as parents a little peace of mind too.

  • Meet their new teacher, or if they have the same one, drop by to say hi.
  • Encourage your child to share something about themselves when they meet their new teacher.  It helps make a connection.
  • Find out the class list.  Most kids will feel a little more comfortable once they know who will be in their class.
  • If you are at a new school, take a tour.  Point out all the “important” places: cafateria, library, office, bathroom.
  • Make buying school supplies fun! Once you have the list in hand let your child pick out what color folder or scissars, notebook style, etc.
  • Practice your back to school routine, see how long it takes everyone to get ready in the morning.
  • Get enough sleep!!  Pediatricians cannot express the importance of this enough!
  • Plan healthy breakfasts, something that older children can help make.
  • Plan healthy lunches, have your older children put their lunch together the night before.
  • Prep the night before: lay clothes out for younger children, get lunches made.
  • Take sports and extra curricular activities into account when it comes to homework.  My son knows that if he has homework, then that is the first thing he does as soon as we get home.
  • Talk to you child about all the fun activites they will get to do and the new friends they will make.
  • Pray with them before you walk out the door in the morning, we don’t leave the driveway without praying for the day ahead.  Send them off with some encouraging bible verses:

“My presence will go with you and I will give you rest.” Ex. 33:14

“Do not be anxious about anything…” Phil. 4:6

“God is our refuge and our strength…” Ps. 46:1

“Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up” Prov. 12:25


Leah