15 tips for a great school year

Lisa Taylor, who works part-time in Information Technologies-Media Services, says she believes that the school week goes more smoothly by choosing outfits and packing backpacks the night before. Here, she helps 11-year-old Daniel with his homework while 8-year-old Andrew stashes away school supplies and Marra, 13, decides what she’ll wear.

4:14 p.m., Aug. 17, 2005--Last school year, your kid routinely skipped breakfast, missed the school bus at least once a week and put off that big social studies project until the night before it was due.

This year doesn’t have to be a re-run of old bad habits. September means a new classroom, new teachers and a fresh start. Help your child start out the school year right with these tips, provided by experts at the University of Delaware:

Pat Tanner Nelson, Cooperative Extension family and human development specialist, advises parents to:

Get to know your child’s teachers and stay in contact with them throughout the year. Inform them about events (a recent move, divorce, etc.) that may influence how your child does in school;
Let your child know that he or she is responsible for homework. Don’t become overly involved in your child’s homework; your role should be answering questions and making sure assignments are complete; and
Make learning real. Show how school skills are needed for such day-to-day activities as cooking from a recipe, balancing a checkbook and writing thank-you notes.

Jeanne Geddes-Key, Emily L. Phelps Director of the College School, suggests that you:

Prepare a good breakfast for your child that includes protein. Good sources of protein include eggs, cheese or milk. Protein will help keep your kids from getting hungry before lunchtime;
Encourage your child to read every day at his or her reading level. Make reading a daily habit, whether it’s right after school or as part of the bedtime routine; and
Purge the lunch box of junk food. Pack a nutritious lunch that has minimal sugar.

Roxane Whittaker, Cooperative Extension educator in family and consumer sciences, provides this advice:

Set up a study area. And make sure it’s a spot that’s quiet and free of distractions;
Eat together as a family as often as possible. Talk about the day’s events, including school and homework; and
Get into the habit of learning beyond the classroom. Extracurricular and family activities are good ways to help your child learn new things and gain confidence in his or her abilities.

Dene Klinzing, a professor of individual and family studies, offers these suggestions:

Help your child develop coping skills to handle stressful moments that arise during the school day. For example, looking at a photo of mom and dad might calm a small child who is experiencing separation anxiety;
Involve your children in getting ready to go back to school. Let them pick out their own lunchboxes, backpacks and other school supplies; and
The school bus can be scary for small children, so linking your child with a bus buddy for the first few weeks can help. If an older sibling won’t be riding the same bus, see if a neighborhood child will be the buddy.

Ron Jester, Cooperative Extension safety specialist, has these tips for getting to and from school safely:

Children who walk to school should learn the right way to cross the street. Teach your children to look right, left, right before crossing;
Bus riders also need to pay close attention to crossing the street. Tell them to walk 10 feet away from the bus, look for a signal from the bus driver and then look right, left, right; and
Kids who ride their bikes to school should wear a helmet that’s in good condition and fits properly. Delaware state law requires helmets for children under age 16.

Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson

E-mail this article

To learn how to subscribe to UDaily, click here.