1. Our attitudes can make or break the experience!
It’s easy to feel stress or anxiety when you realize that it’s August and school starts in just a few short weeks!
Did all of the back-to-school shopping get done?
Am I ready to get back to making school lunches?
If we (the adults) project a positive attitude about the back-to-school season, it can powerfully impact how our children feel about heading back to school. Some children may naturally be excited to get back to seeing their friends and favorite teachers daily. Other children may be naturally anxious. They may not be looking forward to being without their parents, siblings, pets, and favorite toys. If we stay positive, and don’t let the overwhelming details take over, we can set our children up for success.
2. Establishing A Routine
Routines can get redundant at times. They can also be necessary when going through transitions in life, such as heading back to school. Establishing a solid but flexible routine can lead to an easier experience. They take the thought out of basic decisions that need to be made each day.
When the expectations are clear, they are a lot easier to abide by. This goes for both for kids and adults, and then the behavior becomes routine.
Without having a routine in place, things can become a little hectic! At the start of the school year, our before and after school students help our staff to come up with a list of responsibilities and expectations for everyone at the program. This may include things like keeping student belongings neatly in a specified area. This eases parent pickup when little Johnny’s backpack would otherwise be lost under a pile of bags and jackets. Setting up daily routines helps all children know that upon arrival, they drop off belongings, wash up for snack, attend Homework Club. Then they engage in the enriching activities and outdoor play that our staff has organized based on their interests.
Routines can be especially helpful at home for things like:
The Morning Shuffle
You know the morning shuffle. The family is roaming around the house trying to figure out what to wear, what to pack for lunch, and where to find their stuff, all while the microwave is beeping after reheating your coffee three times before 7am…
Who knew that one of the hardest parts of ‘adulting’ would be figuring out every meal for every member of your family for the rest of your LIFE – this is dramatic (a little) but stay with me.
Try preparing breakfast the night before, or even farther in advance! Some ideas could include batch-cooking and freezing breakfast sandwiches for grab-and-go meals, overnight oats in the fridge the night before, or even putting a couple of cereal boxes out on the counter! That’s one less decision to make during your busy mornings. Think about what else you can prepare in advance to make your daily life easier.
Making Lunches
Preparing for lunches ahead of time can save you a lot of time and energy! This doesn’t mean you have to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on Sunday to be eaten on Thursday. It means when you get home from the grocery store with a 10-pound bag of carrots, take your zipper baggies or reusable snack containers and pre-pack them. The same can be done with the rest of your snacks and sides, so when it comes time to make lunch, you (or even better, your child!!) can grab a few things to fill up their lunch box, and be on their way.
Returning Home and Unwinding After a Long Day
This is a biggie. You just worked a long day. Your child also had a long day. Now it’s time for dinner, homework, bath, and bed. A parent’s work may never be done, but it can be made easier! Upon returning home, take a few minutes to just sit and unwind. Do some family yoga, stretching, or even just some deep breathing. Allow yourself and your child to be present and relax together, back at home in their safe place with you. Setting up a routine that includes a few minutes to chill out and get comfortable can be just the reset you need to take on the rest of the evening’s tasks. This practice can benefit the whole family and can also be applied in multiple areas of your life, Try it when arriving at work after a stressful commute or gearing up for that sales meeting with your boss. De-stress and reset.
The beautiful thing about routines is that they will look very different from one family to the next. One family may have all of the above-mentioned struggles and need help with prioritizing and finding shortcuts. Another may not struggle with any of these issues, but there may be other areas in life that could benefit from routines. They are not one size fits all, but routines can simplify life in a variety of ways if given the chance.
3. Set boundaries to maintain balance
Boundaries are important in order to maintain balance within your family and life. School is not a competition. Doing things like over-packing the child’s schedule with extra-curricular activities or hyper-focusing on test scores can add to their baseline stress level. This can cause resentment and discontentment in the family, as well as in other areas of their life. Of course, the boundaries you choose to set will be different for each child. It is up to you as the parent/guardian to decide where those boundaries may be needed and help to set your child up for success.
At The Work-Family Connection, we believe in positive attitudes that lead to warmth and connection. We work with our students to create flexible routines, expectations, and healthy boundaries. We set them up for success!