Back to School Tips
It’s now time for back to school and everybody wonders how can I get through the school year with the least possible disruption and the smoothest transition so that the children will have a healthy and organized year?
Some pointers include the following:
- Make sure you fill out all those stacks of school forms that come home in the children’s backpacks the minute you get them and send them back to the school so they are done and over. The quicker you can get those types of things done and over, the sooner you will be able to stop stressing about your to dos and avoid being singled out at back to school night!
- Buy a big calendar that is set up for 2022 to 2023. Put it in a central location and add in as many dates as possible knowing the upcoming holidays, the days that there are parent-teacher conferences, back-to-school night and all sorts of other activities. This way you have the important events mapped out and in plain view of everyone so that the dates that need to be addressed are known and there is no overlap or missed appointments.
- Make a list for grocery shopping and plan your meals for the next week or maybe even a month. The more organized you are, the more able you are to plan for the “meal deals” at the grocery store but also make sure you have the ingredients you need to prepare the dinners. The worst thing to do is have to make grocery runs for extra ingredients taking up time and especially with the high gas prices at the moment. Moreover, planning out the meal will allow for you to make healthy dinners rather than doing take-out or compulsive shopping at the last minute.
- Make sure you have all the doctor, dentist and other health appointments planned out so that the children can play sports and all their physicals are up-to-date. Moreover, you will need to verify and coordinate to make sure that all the shots are up-to-date including Covid shots. This year is going to be an interesting year based on the recent numbers of the continuous outbreak of Covid that has hit the community.
- Figure out ways to make life easier such as planning carpools or having parents share in the transportation for after-school activities or play dates. Also, meal planning with neighbors can be fun whereas one family makes meals for several families and each family can take one day a week to cook and 4 days to be off! Anything that can alleviate the stress of having to juggle a lot of activities, school and work will make life easier and less stressful for everyone.
- Make plans for the weekend because let’s face it the weekend is the fun time. Too often we are so focused on making sure the children get their homework done, go to bed at the right time, do their activities, go to tutoring, etc. that parents forget that it’s also important for the children to have downtime and enjoy their weekends. Now is a great time to look at fall activities such as pumpkin rides, local museums, gardens and other fun things while the weather is still pleasant.
- Most important, make sure you have some down time for the children and for the family. In today’s world everything is so rushed and busy that we often forget to carve out time just to sit and relax and be together. This can include something as simple as watching TV, making a puzzle, playing cards, reading or just enjoying being around each other. Also, it is a great way to weave in exercise for the family such as taking walks in the neighborhood, biking, going to parks or playing catch. All of these activities are fun times, but they are also wonderful ways to keep your family active and healthy.
