5 Back-to-School Tips For Parents

Back-to-School season can be really exciting or anxiety-inducing (hopefully not the latter!).

I remember it being very bitter-sweet when I was growing up. Going back to school meant summer was officially over, but I got to get new school supplies and see my friends. 

My family didn’t have a lot of money, so back-to-school shopping meant buying what was on sale and not what me and my brother wanted.

Now that I am a parent myself, I am able to learn from my childhood and better prepare myself and kids for a new school year! These are a few tips that have helped make back-to-school a pleasant experience for everyone.

Check in With Your Kids

Mental health and well-being is not just for adults. It’s just as important for kids, if not more, to cultivate a healthy mindset and emotional balance.

It’s clear that there’s more pressure on kids now to grow up faster, succeed quicker, and stand out more amongst their peers with the normalization of social media. It is much easier for them to compare themselves to others when they have access to the whole world in their hands.

Carve out time with your kids to check in with them, see how they’re feeling with school starting again, and if there’s anything they’d like to share. Ask if there’s anything that they’re worried about, such as bullies or learning obstacles.

You may be surprised with what you find out! Kids process life the best way they can and if they’re not feeling good about something, it usually shows in their grades or behavior.

Let Your Kids Choose

We’ve been in their shoes before, so we know how exciting it feels to choose which backpack to sport for the school year, what combination of pens and highlighters to use, which style binder, etc. It makes such a big difference using items that you consciously choose.

Though, the price tag may not always agree with our pocket books! I know it didn’t for my parents and so I had to forgo things I wanted for what was more sensible.

So how can you let your kids choose what they want without it breaking your bank? Plan ahead! 

Take the opportunity to teach your kids how to earn money over the summer and learn how to save their money so that they can purchase what they want come school time.

This experience is empowering in many ways and everyone is happy!

Personalize and DIY

Another way to make back-to-school exciting for your kids is letting them personalize their supplies!

Maddie and Olivia were able to pick out new shoes and get them personalized too! Something seemingly little as putting stars and their initials on their new shoes made them so giddy about going to school so they can show their friends.

There are so many ways to get something personalized, from supporting small businesses on Etsy to finding brands that offer this customization to doing it yourself!

If you have vinyl and a cutting machine at home, such as a Silhouette or Cricut, you can easily add flair to backpacks, keychains, pencil cases, and more! Now you don’t have to get too fancy - even a paint marker or Sharpie can get the job done! 

You can turn this DIY time into a fun weekend activity to do with your kids (and even take this opportunity to check in with them too).

Set Goals and Intentions

A wonderful way to motivate your kids and get them excited for the new school year is by having clear objectives of what they want to accomplish and having a sense of purpose.

Perhaps it’s bringing up their GPA, being a part of a school group, leading a project, doing volunteer work, auditioning for choir, trying out for the team, or whatever else lights them up.

Setting goals gets kids to stay focused on what’s important, encourages them to learn new skills, teaches them how to manage their time, and instills a sense of responsibility. 

It also gives them more reason to celebrate themselves and opportunities to build self-esteem.

Incorporating goal-setting and intention-building sets them up for personal and academic growth. With your help and support, they learn how to navigate successes and failures with ease while building strong life-skills.

Establish a Routine

Summer was a time for anything to happen! Sleep whenever, wake up whenever, do whatever. But back-to-school doesn’t offer that sense of freedom and can throw off a lot of kids (and their parents)!

It’s not only great to establish a routine for the school year, but to also make routines fun!

Routines create stability, predictability, independence, and freedom. It also offers a structure to easily incorporate family time, lessen unnecessary screen-time or other time-wasters, and helps everyone get on  the same page.

A consistent routine contributes to academic success, goal-achievement, and learning invaluable life skills. It reduces stress and power struggles when everyone knows what is expected from themselves and of others.

Pro Tip: Start establishing a routine before school actually begins! And if school has already started for you, don’t worry, you can sit down with your kids and establish a routine starting now.

I hope you learned a new way to make parenthood a little easier and back-to-school that much more exciting for your little ones! Let’s have the best school year yet!

Leave a comment about what you’re looking forward to this school year!