By now, most children up and down the country have returned to school after the summer holidays or are starting school for the very first time.
School is one of the first educational milestones for children to experience and in some cases, overcome.
For children, as well as us adults, the six weeks summer holidays are a very long time! By the time children go back to school in September, they have forgotten the rules and routines of school life, but there are a few things that you can do to ensure that your children settle down quickly and leap back into learning!
Create a schedule with your children
School is all about routine and your children will grow to respect the timetable and routine. In order to make that your child is prepared for school, create a schedule at home. If your child is old enough, go through this with them to help them understand that there are priorities in life that come before fun activities! Things to include on the after school schedule include, spellings, any homework, reading, creative drawings and times tables for example. From here you could give your child freedom to plan some after school rewards or fun activities to enjoy.
Turning of a new leaf
One of the best thing about school life is that every new school years means a new leaf! Children have a new slate and often are introduced to new teachers, which is great for allowing children to work with different people, following different commands and activities. If your child was late to school a lot the previous school year for example, September brings with it a chance to get off on the right foot and be early for school.
Seeing familiar faces!
Like for adults in the work environment, children have a close relationship with other children who they attend school with – especially when you think they spend around 6 hours with each other five days a week! If your child is nervous about returning to school, or just isn’t looking forward to it, arrange to meet his or her friends before the school day starts so they can walk into the playground together – it’ll make things a lot easier!
Make sure you’re there!
By meeting your child in the playground or the school gates with a smile and a hug waiting for them, you will instantly put them at ease and make them feel safe. Encourage your child to speak about their day, asking open questions to encourage them to discuss everything they have encountered during the day. Remember, many children find returning to school exhausting, so make sure that you don’t overdo it in those first few weeks!
How did your child get on starting or returning to school? We’d love to know! Tell us more in the comments below…
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