Back-to-School Guide for Parents Tips and Tricks for a Great School Year, Written by a Classroom Teacher

Are you the parent of a child (or teenager) in school?  Do you want your child to do well?  We are here to help.  This is a handy guide to help ensure that your kid is prepared to do well in the classroom (and to save you time and money).  Whether it is the first day of school or the end of the school year, you will find our parent tips extremely useful. Tip #1: Remember the overall point of education. The overall point of education is preparing your child to enter the adult world as a functioning human being.  Keep this goal in mind (as we will throughout this article) and you (and your children) will do fine. School Supplies Most parents mistakenly wait until they get the "school supplies" list from the teacher or school before.  But you can save time and money by buying the basic early.  You know that kids need pencils, glue, etc.  Stores like Target and OfficeMax have incredibly cheap prices a few weeks before school starts.  A one-subject spiral notebook that normal costs at least a dollar can be found on sale for a dime if you shop in early August.  So why wait?  These deals are especially worthwhile if you have a junior or senior high school student, since teachers aren't as specific about what kids need. Stock up on spiral notebooks, folders, pens, pencils, crayons, and markers.  BUT only give your child the minimum number of items that he/she needs to get started.  Hide the rest.  This way, when your child runs out of room in a spiral in November, you'll have some already (instead of a trip to the store when these items aren't on sale).  The reason you hide them is so your kid doesn't get the idea that he/she can run through 46756968967 draft copies (or write 67809856477 notes to friends). Homework Designate a homework area.  Have a desk where your child(ren) have exclusive reign.  A desk where you write bills, etc., is not good for homework.  Why?  Your kids need to feel a sense of ownership and control over their homework spot.  If you force the kids to work in a spot where you're seen doing things you hate (like paying bills), you're automatically associating homework with chores. Most kids are good about getting homework done. If your child is not good about getting homework done, consider putting password locks on the TV, internet, or cable.  Your service providers can give you details on how this is done. For kids that are good at getting work done, as well as for parents who don't have the room or the money for a desk, consider buying a portable lap desk.  These can be bought for around $20.00.  The style or type does not matter (your child will probably want to pick it out).  The lap desk simply has to offer a flat surface for writing, and a storage compartment for extra paper, pencils, and pens.  If you have more than one child, each child should have her/his own lap desk. Daily Lunchbox and Backpack Routines Everyone does it (including teachers)...we all forget to fill out forms, permission slips, etc.  All parents have let a lunch rot in a lunchbox over the weekend.  But what can be done? No matter what your child's age is, do NOT get into the habit of searching through your child's backpack.  Teach your child from day one that this is his/her job. Starting in kindergarten, when a child gets home, walk him/her through the routine of emptying out the backpack.  Kids may need a refresher course in the backpack and lunchbox routines for the first few years, but eventually they will master this skill. As a parent, all you need to do is have an in/out spot for paperwork (there are magnetic baskets you can buy that you can place on the refrigerator, and a universal basket works even with a full house of kids). So what is this backpack and lunchbox routine?  We'll name our imaginary child Brian.  Starting in kindergarten, Brian's mom walked him through the steps of the routine.  Brian is now in eighth grade, and knows the backpack routine well (as do his two siblings).  Every afternoon, Brian walks into the house with his backpack.  The first thing Brian does is take out his lunchbox.  Brian knows that mom and dad refuse to clean the lunchbox, and will not pack a fresh lunch unless they are presented with a clean lunchbox.  So every day, Brian cleans it out, and leaves his clean lunchbox on the counter to be filled.  If Brian does not like what mom and dad prepare, or if mom and dad insist that Brian make his own lunch, Brian does so.  You may be thinking...but what if Brian forgets?  We can't let our baby starve to death!  We'll just end up giving him lunch money, or getting his lunch ready ourselves!  He'll be rewarded for being lazy because he'll end up buying chips and soda pop at school with the money we'll have to give him!  This won't happen.  Why?  Don't give forgetful Brian any lunch money.  You must have "oh no" lunches waiting on deck.  These are lunches that you store in the cupboard in case of an emergency...things like tuna fish-and-crackers packets, etc., paired with the child's least favorite canned fruit, a distasteful beverage, etc.  These "oh no" lunches will be nutritional, but will also be the very last things any child wants to see in a lunchbox.  Keep these "oh no" lunches fully prepared, in brown paper bags, so that they can be grabbed off the shelf at a moment's notice.  Your child must learn that failing to follow the lunchbox routine will result not in treats for lunch, but in yuckiness for lunch.  Our make-believe child, Brian, has had to eat tuna fish and sliced pears for lunch, and the taste still lingers in his mouth.  Brian may have complained a lot about his emergency lunches, but he learned the lesson.  To avoid eating any more emergency lunches, he cleans out his lunchbox every day. Brian's class is going on a field trip in a week, and Brian needs mom or dad to sign a permission slip.  After cleaning out his lunchbox, Brian pulls out his permission slip.  Brian places his permission slip in the "in" box which is located on the refrigerator.  Brian knows that at some point before morning, one of his parents will look through the "in" box and sign the form.  By the next morning, Brian's signed form will be in the "out" box (conveniently located next to the "in" box).  Brian has learned that forgetting to put paperwork in the "in" box will result in missed field trips, etc.  Parents love in-and-out boxes because it means never having to search for paperwork.  It means that everything is in one place.  Teachers and office workers use in-and-out boxes every day.  Why?  Because they work! Continued... Page   1   2   3   4

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