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How to make going back to school fun

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How to make going back to school fun instead of a dreaded affair

As a parent to two school going children, I find that turning back to school into a fun event instead of a dreaded one is a challenge. It is the same every new school term. Here are some of the strategies I use to make going back to school fun.

How to reduce the tears and fears of going back to school? The first thing would be to turn going back to school into a fun event.

“Yes, but how do I turn going back to school into a fun event?”

Love Notes in Lunchboxes

And Other Ideas to Color Your Child's Day

Love Notes in Lunchboxes: And Other Ideas to Color Your Child's Day

Moms can make a difference to boring school lunches by packing a love note and encouragement to make going to school back to school fun instead of dreadful. This collection of warm anecdotes and Scriptures offers mothers creative ideas for packing a unique lunchbox. Get Love Notes in Lunchboxes.

Back to School

What does going back to school mean to a child?

Back to School means new teachers, new classmates, sometimes even new schools! We all know that anything new means change and change is scary. Change is hard and stressful even for adults, what more for a child?

The best way is to ease your child back to school in a slow transition and that would mean slowing down on your holidaying activities about one week before school starts.

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No last minute holidays!

Give your child a slowing down period to ease them back to school slowly.

Easing your child back to school

It is important to have a transition period from holiday fun back to school routine. Here are some ways you can ease your child back to school.

One week before school starts, you should do the following:

  • Talk about school. Talk about your child's fears about school if any.

  • Talk about their friends. Encourage your child to look forward to seeing old friends and making new friends.

  • By now, holidays in a hilly resort or having fun at the beach should be over. Do quiet activities at home with your child. Crafting and reading is a good activity you can do at home. You don' t have to do back to school crafts. Any craft will do.

  • Adjust your child's sleeping hours to ease them to the back to school routine. That means no sleeping in and no late nights. This is very important to make sure that they are not overtired during the first week of back to school.

  • Go shopping for back to school supplies. Bring your child along. Let him or her choose something he or she likes to bring to school on the first day of school.

  • Get school bags, books and stationery ready. Allow your child to sharpen pencils and color pencils, wrap school books and pack their school stuff. You can do this for a younger child however encourage your older child to do this on his or her own. You can do it together with them but not FOR them. Talk about school as you work together to get their school stuff ready.

    • Time to change that backpack?

    Perhaps a new backpack may just encourage the reluctant school goer to go back to school.
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    Talk to your child

    Talk about school. Talk about their friends. Talk about their fears.

    “Ok... but what slowing down activities can I do with my child?”

    Here are some fun crafts you can do with your child at home

    It does not have to be back to school crafts

    Some children do not enjoy back to school crafts because it reminds them of school so any craft will do. As long as it is a quiet activity which your child enjoys and can do at home. Avoid going for holidays right till the very last minute. Plan ahead.
    Easy Crafts for Young Children
    These crafts are fun yet easy for young children. You can help your child in some areas for example cutting but let them do most of the work if they can handle it. Avoid doing it for them!
    Origami for Children
    Origami is one of the easiest, most creative, fun yet cheap craft to do. All you need is some square origami paper. If you don't have those, just cut some paper into squares and you can do an origami project. If you want to make your project look pretty, cut some colored paper into squares or some wrapping paper with design. You can substitute these for origami paper if you don't have any.
    Paper Crafts for Children
    Paper is a very creative medium. Besides origami, you can do many other fun stuff with paper such as a toilet paper robot, a paper plate duck etc. In fact, you can do a whole lot of crafts using toilet paper holders and paper plates. It is also a good way to recycle.
    Holiday Crafts for Children
    These are more specific. They are for teaching kids about certain cultures and holidays around the world but who says they have to be limited to a particular holiday season? You can do them at any time!

    Mothers are the best multitaskers!

    Mom's Ultimate Family Organizer: A One-Stop Planner for Busy Moms

    The amount of multitasking a mother has to do, whether she is a full time working mum, a stay at home mum or a work from home mum. This becomes even more apparent during school days.

    This Family Organiser or planner is perfect for the busy mom who has to organize not just herself but everyone else and the house too!

    Use charts to plan your child's school days

    Be innovative. You can use back to school charts meant for teachers and use them in your home too!
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    “Read going back to school stories to prepare your child for going back to school.”

    Back to School Stories

    Storybooks about school and going back to school

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    Adjust your child's sleeping hours to match school hours

    That means no late nights, no sleeping in and no napping during school hours. Do this about one or two weeks before school starts.

    Label It!

    Brother Family Labeler

    Kids often lose their things in school. Sometimes they get lost or misplaced or is accidentally taken by a classmate. The best way to avoid this is to label your child's school things. This Brother Family Labeler is just right for making personalized labels for your child's school things.

    Personalized Stickers

    Personalized Stickers are great as labels too. Label everything. Label your child's bags, tumblers, school attire, shoes, etc. Your child will love these personalized stickers and so will you.
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    Back to School Activities

    Here are some great resources for back to school activities you can do to prepare your child for going back to school.
    DLTK's Back To School Section
    DLTK has a section on Back to School Activities including Poems and Songs for Back to School and Printable Back to School Activities
    Enchanted Learning.com
    Another wonderful resource for back to school activities for young children is Enchanted Learning. The printable school name tags are especially useful for first time school goers.

    Going back to School does not only involve the child, it involves the whole household

    Everyone needs to make adjustments to their routine and calendar.

    Back to School Checklist for Parents

    In preparing your child to go back to school, you must first prepare yourself and your home for back to school routine.

    Get Yourself Ready

    1. Apply for leave of absence from work to accompany your child during the first few days of school to make the transition back to school easier on the child.

    2. Make sure you check that medical records are up to date and readily available

    3. Fill up any necessary school forms

    4. Arrange transportation for school

    5. Meet your child's teachers during the first week of school if possible

    6. Sign up for any lunch plan at school


    Get Your Home Ready

    1. Clear up a study and homework area for your child

    2. Get a chart or calendar ready to mark important school events

    3. Stock up on back to school supplies


    Get Your Child Ready

    1. Talk to your child about school and what to expect

    2. Establish a proper bedtime routine early

    3. Show your child the school layout and tell them where to go on the first day

    4. Remind your child to memorize your contact number and address for emergencies

    5. Check out your child's school attire and school shoes. Make sure they have all the necessary uniforms for gym or other classes

    School Snack and School Lunch Recipes and Cookbooks

    It is best to prepare your own meals for kids to take to school. When you prepare the meal yourself, you will know exactly what you put in them. Give only fresh foods, avoid canned or preservative laden foods.

    You can get some great ideas from School Lunch Recipe Cookbooks for healthy meals for kids in school.
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    Make sure your child eats good nutritious meals in school.

    Don't let your child snack on junk food during school breaks.

    School Lunch Boxes and Bento Boxes

    Make sure your child eats well at school

    One of the ways to make sure your child eats well in school is to pack homemade lunch or snacks for your child to bring to school.

    You can make your child's snacks more interesting by using bento boxes or attractive looking lunch boxes.
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    Back to School Shopping List

    Here is a quick Back to School Shopping List. Make sure your child has the following back to school supplies to prepare him or her to go back to school.

    Back to School Shopping List

    Get your child ready by making sure you have the following ready:


    1. School Attire

    2. School Shoes

    3. Backpack

    4. Pencil Box

    5. Pencils

    6. Ballpoint Pens

    7. Ruler

    8. Color Pencils

    9. Crayons

    10. Erasers

    11. Sharpener

    12. Glue Stick

    13. Scissors

    14. Notebook

    15. Book Wrappers

    16. Water Tumblers

    17. Lunch Box

    Must Have Cute Back to School Supplies

    Back to school supplies

    You can shop online for back to school supplies but shop together with your child. Let them choose something that they like.
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    My Child's Bag is Too Heavy!

    Trolley BagStudies have shown that wearing a backpack that is more than 15% of a child's total body weight is a health risk. My child's bag is definitely over this minimum weight. I have tried asking her to leave more books in her school desk or reducing the number of books she carries to school but she is afraid she will be scolded by teachers for forgetting to do her homework or forgetting to bring a book. I limit all other things she has to carry apart from books. Still her bag is very heavy.

    I have no choice but to allow her to use a trolley bag to school. A wheely rolling bag or trolley bag looks like a bag that travellers use. It resolves some of the problem but not all. She is on the 2nd floor of the school. This means she has to drag her bag with the extra weight of the trolleys up and down the stairs. She says she prefers it that way. Well, at least she won't have to walk around the whole school compound bent over the way I see many of the kids at school do.

    The University of Colorado Hospital has a really cool Safe Backpack Weight Calculator. Do check it out.

    Safe Backpack Weight Calculator

    The University of Colorado Hospital has a really cool Safe Backpack Weight Calculator. Do check it out.

    Trolley Bags with Wheels

    Wheeled School Carry-On Bags

    If your child's bagpack is more than 15% his or her body weight, you may consider a wheely or trolley bag instead. However, make sure your child knows how to carry it safely up the stairs because trolley and wheels add more weight to the bag.
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    Guestbook Comments

    • Momsbusy247 Dec 28, 2011 @ 10:44 pm | delete
      Nice lens! Very nice tips whether for school or work.
    • MisterJeremy Aug 11, 2011 @ 12:47 am | delete
      Going back to school (or work) after a long break is always a shock, so I agree with you. The more you can ease in to it, the better.
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    mumsgather

    I have two school going kids aged 7 and 9. Helping them ease from school holidays back to school is an ongoing challenge. I'd like to share some of th... more »

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