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Summertime, and the livin' is easy... but not if it's August, and you're a parent. Some 75.5 million students were enrolled in US schools for Fall 2006, and for those kids, it's time to wind down from summer vacation and get in gear for school. Parents may find they have a lot to accomplish in the few weeks before school starts, from helping little ones get ready for kindergarten to coaxing high-schoolers through their last-minute reading-list rush. Don't worry — do your homework here, and we'll have you ready for back to school in less time than it takes to shine an apple.
Making the switch. The first day back at school doesn't have to be a shock. Pave the road for a smooth transition by preparing your child for the switch from those long, play-in-the-sprinkler summer days to structured schedules and recess bells. The following tips are useful year-round, but are especially helpful during the summer:
Read. Read my lips. Read anything at all. Just read! Reading for pleasure — that's right, curling up with a good book — has been shown to have significant positive effects on vocabulary, comprehension, fluency and spelling; it is also a good indicator of potential academic achievement. Summer reading can help minimize academic losses during the long vacation, especially in children who are just beginning to acquire their reading skills. If you have young children, read to them and encourage them to read to you. Older kids can participate in summer reading programs, but experts say they'll get more out of voluntary reading time in the library. Staying on target with reading is crucial: until 3rd grade, kids learn to read. From 4th grade onward, they read to learn.
Explore. Take a walk, play a board game, go skating. Have fun! Education continues beyond school walls, and this kind of informal learning teaches your child how to focus for a long period of time even while completing different tasks — a skill vital to success in the classroom. While interacting with the outside world, children learn to observe, experiment, and reflect with a freedom not always available to them in school. This is the time to develop awe and wonderment about the world around us — in everything from the changing seasons to the arc of a baseball pitch.
Reinforce. Establish some house rules with your child, set up a schedule for chores, design a homework plan, and, above all, show your child how to break down problems into bite-sized, manageable pieces. Settling into a structured environment before school starts will give your child a helping hand when school is back in session, and with the right problem-solving tools, the student will know he can depend on himself in new, potentially overwhelming situations.
The daily drill. The life of a student is busy indeed. Help boost endurance and cut down on chaos by following these guidelines:
Be prepared. Getting out the door in the morning can really be chaotic. In the rush to catch the school bus, lunchboxes, homework and even socks end up getting left behind at home. Keep logistical nightmares to a minimum by readying backpacks and lunches the night before.
Don't skip breakfast. Kids and teens, like adults, need a good blend of protein and carbohydrates (like high-fiber cereal with milk) to help jump-start their day and keep them going until lunchtime. Not only will it help them cut back on junk food, but this energy boost can help keep them focused and alert in class, too. Help your child take an extra 10 or 15 minutes to sit down and eat in the morning — or, if eating on the run is unavoidable, pack up a sandwich of peanut butter on toast.
While we're on the topic... healthy eating doesn't end at breakfast. A bag lunch needn't be complicated, but it should be healthy. A balanced lunch contains the following:
- protein (such as tuna, egg)
- whole-wheat starch (like crackers)
- vegetable (baby carrots are easy)
- fruit (cut into pieces)
- a small treat (cookie, pudding)
After school, your child may need another pick-me-up. If you're afraid she won't have any appetite left over for dinner, offer her a light snack (such as mini pizzas on pita, peanut butter on celery with raisins, cereal and milk, fruit, popcorn or veggie sticks) and consider having dinner at a slightly later hour. See Parents.com's "Healthy Snacks from A to Z" and "Healthy Lunch Box Makeovers."
Help out with homework. First-graders are often thrilled when they start bringing home their 15 minutes of homework — it makes them feel like "big kids." High-schoolers are less than excited and may need convincing just to sit down and get started while the intrigues of the real world tug at their attention span. Homework reinforces and practices skills already taught in school, and you can help, even if you've forgotten your algebra theorems or French grammar.
Study spot. Set up a place where your child can do his homework. Whether it's the kitchen table or a desk in another room, make sure the necessary supplies are nearby: pens, pencils, erasers, scratch paper, stapler, calculator, ruler, etc.
Schedule. Work with your children to figure out what timing works for them. Some kids will need to run around after school to release pent-up energy; others will be able to settle down right away and get work done so they can have the rest of the evening free. Either way, a regular schedule is likely to help your child feel better about doing homework.
Focus! Turn off the TV and establish rules about using the phone and Internet during homework time. Your child may tell you she can easily instant message with a friend while writing an essay about Macbeth. But studies show that instant messaging is not multitasking — doing two things at the same time — but actually divides one's attention, making learning less effective.
Be a guru. You may not have all the answers, but chances are you know how to find them. If you're itching to help your frustrated child finish his homework, the best gift you can give him is the ability to figure things out on his own. Teach your child how to use a dictionary, flip through an encyclopedia at the library, or search the online reference material at Answers.com. Check out other homework resources at Kids.gov. And give plenty of positive reinforcement.
Back-to-school shopping. Balancing your child's self-confidence on her first day of school with your own confidence in your wallet can be tricky. Many parents invest heavily in their children's wardrobes and school supplies in the weeks before school starts: in August 2005 alone, Americans spent a dizzying $6.6 billion at family clothing stores. Keep checkbooks and tantrums in check by keeping it simple:
Make a list. How many new pairs of pants does your child really need? It's hard to tell when you don't know how many are hiding out at the back of a drawer or under the bed. Spend some time with your child going through her closet and figuring out what still fits and what should be handed down or given away. Then make lists of "wants" (such as the latest Bratz accessories) and "needs" (shoes that fit).
Shop online. Avoid lines and dressing-room meltdowns! Take advantage of the world wide shopping experience. You'll find everything from erasable markers to Yoda backpacks. Too many choices? Not sure what you should be paying? Narrow your search and find the lowest prices with Shopping.com's price comparison helper.
Take your time. You might find it more convenient to do your back-to-school shopping after school starts. Stores are likely to be less crowded, and your child might have a better sense of what she wants after seeing what all her friends are wearing.
Staying current. Once the back-to-school rush is over, you can relax a little. But while it might seem like you've released your child into the hands of his teacher, you're actually still on call.
Be involved. Find time to communicate with teachers and schools at the beginning of the school year. What better time to tell the teacher of any special needs your child may have, or just discuss your concerns? Continue to stay involved throughout the year. Take an interest in parent-teacher meetings and review report cards, following up on problem areas if necessary. Join the PTA. Volunteer when you can in the classroom and on field trips.
Establishing a working relationship with your child's teacher will make it easier to deal with issues like homework completion, absences, bad behavior and eating disorders. For more information on how to maximize involvement with your child's teachers and school, visit Ed.Gov's help site.
Stay on top of the issues. Bullies still steal lunch money, and freshmen still get stuffed into lockers. Students even get caught now and then for plagiarizing. But the age of hi-tech and low budgets has brought with it a world of problems you may be less familiar with. Consider the debate about cell phones in schools — good in case of emergency, bad when used to cheat on tests. Selling sodas and sugary snacks in school vending machines is another point of contention, because despite their minimal nutritional content, the revenue is great for school income.
Bullying does remain an issue (see the National Library of Medicine for resources). Some other current debates center around school uniforms, school safety, traditional vs. year-round schools, and the effectiveness of homework. Safe Internet use also remains a sticky issue for kids who grew up with it and parents who don't know what a "Google search" is. For some helpful Internet guidelines, check out Common Sense.
Familiarize yourself with the different sides of these issues and discuss them with your children. Talk to other parents, ask questions, and read up online.
Did you know? The oldest public school in America was established in 1635, in large part by the Rev. John Cotton, a Puritan minister who had run away from his parish in Boston, England, to what is now Boston, Mass., seeking freedom to teach his religion in peace. For its first decade, classes of the Boston Latin School were held in the homes of its masters; the few pupils studied Greek, Latin, unspecified "elementary subjects" and — during breaks — writing. The curriculum followed the ancient Greek premise, "The only good things are the goods of the soul."
Hold on to your ABCs, folks: some 350 years later, American writer Alvin Toffler predicts that critical thinking will trump even the Classics:
The illiterate of the twenty-first century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.
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