Back to School: Tips to Simplify the First Week of School
It’s time to start thinking about the coming school year! There’s a lot to get done and it’s going to be hectic, but there are ways to get off to a smooth start. Here are 6 tips to simplify the first week of school.
Start Early It sounds so obvious and we tell ourselves to do it, but sometimes we need reminders to start early. If we get just a few things out of the way now — doctor’s appointments, back to school shopping, going through registration forms — we won’t have to scramble when we start counting down the days rather than the weeks until school starts.
Create a Calendar Make a list of all the activities and chores you’ll be facing when the school year starts. Put them in a calendar where everyone can see it so they know what to expect for each day, week and month. If you’re ambitious, create a chalkboard wall and make a calendar to change up every week so every can keep up with their activities.
Set Up Study Nooks Now You want your kids to be the best students they can be and having a good place to study at home supports that. However, no one is going to have the time or patience to throw something together once school starts. If you do it now, there won’t be a risk of the idea falling through the cracks and having to put it off until next fall.
Start Thinking About Menus If you start planning what you’re going to eat ahead of time, you won’t have to rush to put together dinners and lunches as you go. It makes grocery shopping easier, and you’ll have less to worry about when you’re driving from work to soccer practice and back home. You don’t have to fill out detailed plans, but write out good ideas for what you’ll need and how it can get done well-in advance so you feel less frazzled.
Bedtime Routines Start thinking about when to ease your kids into their school bedtime routines. After a summer with no schedules, getting up and getting to school on time is hard on them and hard on you. Don’t start too early — you want them to enjoy the last days of summer — but if you wait too long, getting back into the groove of school may be harder than it should be.
Your Kids’ Well Being Don’t forget to talk to your kids about what they expect going into the school year. There may be some excitement and some fear — address the issues now so you have less to deal with later.
Problems almost always arise, but when you’re prepared for everything else it’ll make the unexpected easier to handle. The Lakeside Collection has all sorts of ideas and products to help you prepare for the school year. Keep checking back for tips and items you need to survive!
