It’s back to school time across the country and parents and students alike are gearing up for the next 10 months of learning. This can be a stressful time for everyone involved and can cause tense conversations around the kitchen table, so here are a few back to school tips to help parents survive the year!
Show Up
It’s the beginning of the semester and your inbox has been flooded with dozens of emails from your kid’s school. Student handbooks, supply lists, lunch forms, and invitations for events like meet the teacher, open house, and orientation night have been placed on your calendar. While it might be tempting to skip one here and there or ignore them altogether, don’t. Showing up with your student for back to school activities sets the semester off right for all parties included. Teachers appreciate the support from parents and students have an example to follow when it comes to prioritizing their education.
School Supplies
It’s probably the most dreaded task for back to school – supplies shopping. Tax-free weekends and color-coded materials can be overwhelming and can fall to the back burner of school preparation. Unfortunately for parents, the school supplies list is actually really important. Following the provided list guarantees that your student will be prepared for class and takes pressure off the teacher to provide materials.
Learn the Tech
Learning the technology can be one of the most overwhelming and difficult tasks for parents. There’s no doubt that the younger generations are more comfortable with technology, but you never want to be in the situation where you rely on your child to make your bunion appointment at Northwest Surgery Centery for you, so it’s essential that parents make an attempt. Learning the ins and outs of programs like Canvas, Seesaw, Moodle, Zoom, or Google Classroom may seem intimidating at first, but just a night or two a week going through it with your student can save a lot of frustrations later on.
Ask Questions
In case you forgot, school is a big deal as a student. Facing new teachers, peers, subjects, and schedules is both exciting and terrifying, so it’s important to make sure students feel supported in their day-to-day learning. As a parent, show an interest. Ask questions about what they’re learning, who their new friends are, how they like their new teacher or school. Show them that their daily education is important and you care.
Sending students back to school is definitely a team effort. Teachers, parents, and students all have to work together to guarantee a successful year and going the extra mile at the beginning is a great place to start!
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