Back-to-School Tips for Parents

After spending quality time with the family all summer, August marks the time to prep for sending the kids back to school.

While some might dread the experience, others are counting down the days to declutter and settle into a little quiet time. No matter how your kids are being schooled this year, it’s important to do the pre-work that saves extreme stress down the road.

Make sure your school morning routines are optimal by checking these four boxes this month!

1  - ORGANIZE YOUR ENTRYWAY

Picture this: It’s Monday afternoon and your kids walk in the door after school. They dump their bags on the ground, throw their shoes to the side, and go about their day, letting you handle the clean-up job. By organizing your entryway, hectic mornings and afternoons will be a thing of a past.

2 - DECLUTTER YOUR PANTRY

Nothing is more stressful than creating plans for breakfast, dinner, and snacks. On top of that, your kids might bring a packed lunch to school every day. A messy pantry can put you on the verge of a kitchen meltdown. Save yourself the future trouble by cleaning up your pantry NOW.

3 - MAP YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES

Going back to school can mean the beginning of new experiences, routines, and responsibilities. For both students and parents, it is necessary to stay on top of your plans so you don’t forget to get anything done. You can do this by creating a virtual workspace for yourself, or simply writing your plans and goals for the day on a piece of paper.

4 - STICK TO A DAILY SCHEDULE

It’s important that you give your child time to ease into the back-to-school schedule. From sleep to meals, kids face an adjustment from how they lived in the summer, to how they will live for the next nine months. Enforcements such as sleeping hours and dinner time should be instilled at least two weeks prior to the start of school to make the adjustment successful.

Written by: Milan Bastiampillai

Photo: Markeysa Lumpkin