September has officially begun and that means the kids are back in school. Back to school means optimism and fun and a fresh new start, but for parents it can bring additional stress as you need to get back to the school routines and work is often speeding up after a slow summer. Today.com about the “6 Ways to Make Back to School Transition Easier,” where author Jennifer Folsom shared her helpful tips including:
· School supplies- When it comes to shopping for school supplies, Folsom recommends first starting at home. Gather all your leftover supplies first and then make your list of what is still missing. Once you do this, it will be easier, and you will spend less money, shopping at the store.
· School forms– With the start of school comes tons of back-to-school forms to fill in. Folsom suggests having your school age children help with these forms. Have them fill in their names, your home address and start the form, and then you can fill in the rest.
· School info– If you have multiple children in different schools, you will find there are different processes for things like sick days or early dismissal. Before these late drop offs, sick days and doctors’ visits take place, Folsom advises to take a few minutes now to add the name of the school and phone number as a contact in your calendar and add the appropriate instructions for each one under that contact.
In addition Folsom’s great tips, the team at JVComms, which is made up of many working parents, shared their best tips to help with the transition of back-to-school:
· Jen Vargas, President and Founder, says that even though her girls have uniforms, they are lucky to have many options which can make mornings chaotic. She has her children select their uniform items in the evenings, as part of the nighttime routine (shower, brush teeth, select uniforms) and the mornings run much more smoothly.
· Levy Vargas, Director, Strategy and Operations, utilizes a shared calendar for the family, including Grandma and the sitter, so everyone is on the same page, and nothing is left to chance. Now that his older daughter is old enough to have her own phone, she can add her own activities and deadlines, which is an added bonus for teaching responsibility.
· Margaret Hanrahan, Certified Meeting Professional, uses her event planning skills for her own family’s schedules and meals, which makes life easier with juggling three kids! Every Sunday, she plans lunches and dinners for the week and does all the grocery shopping. That same day, the family figures out who is dropping off and picking up the kids for the multiple activities that are going on in the week ahead.
And in my own house, one tip I have found that helps is to pack the kids’ lunches in bento boxes that have separate small compartments for different kinds of food. For kids who are pickier eaters, it gives lots of options to choose from. Foods can include part of last night’s dinner leftovers, fresh fruits and vegetables and snacks. The best part is that when it comes back home, its only one container to wash! Happy back to school!