Help Your Child Conquer their Back-to-School Fears

When you think back to when you started your last “new” job, do you remember how you felt on your first day?  More than a little anxious about how things would go - praying the commute would be problem-free - hoping your coworkers would be easy to get along with - wondering what your boss would be like - and just hoping to fit in. 

Now, imagine what your child must feel like going into a new grade - or a new school. They have the same kinds of worries you would have. Here are some things you can do to help them through this time of transition.

Use books to start conversations. Go to the library or local bookstore to get some back-to-school stories. You’ll find there are many to select from, geared to many different age levels.  You can use these stories to talk to your child about any fears they may have, and help turn those fears to anticipation and excitement. 

Tour the school.  If you child is switching to a new school, a visit during the weeks before school begins can be a big comfort.  Call the school office and ask if you can schedule a tour, or just come for an informal visit. Learn where homeroom is.  Walk through the library. Play on the playground. Find the bathrooms! Those things make a big difference.

Meet the teacher.  Take advantage of any opportunity for your child to meet their teacher before school begins.  If you can find a picture of the teacher on the school web site, post it on the fridge so the teacher’s face becomes familiar to your child.

Start the transition ahead of time.  Many kids have ignored their sleep schedule during the summer months.  The weeks before school begins is a good time for the whole family to ease back into the school-year schedule to ensure your child gets enough sleep.

Practice!  Let your child organize their school supplies and a work area in a quiet place at home. And if they’ll be using a combination lock, make sure they practice opening and locking it until they have that skill down pat.  Another valuable organizational skill is the ability to use a planner.  Even first grade isn’t too early to use a planner – they have them for children of all ages.  If the school doesn’t require that they use one, get one for your child and help them learn how to use it: write down every homework assignment, every upcoming test, and every project.

Find friends.  Try to get the class list in advance or find out which teacher your child will have. If you find that your child's best friend isn't in her new class, arrange a play date with someone who is.  If your child is attending a new school and doesn’t know anyone, talk to them about how to make friends, and what it means to be a good friend.  You can role play to help them learn how to begin conversations and initiate play activities.

Address the gaps.  Finally, if you find that your child has missed some early foundational skills, there may be gaps in reading, writing or math.  At the #TutoringClubJacksonville, we identify these skill gaps with our diagnostic evaluations, and develop a customized plan for your child to get them back on track quickly.  Call us at 268-8556 to enroll your child today!

School Orientation Schedules

Schools in Jacksonville are preparing for opening day!  Parents of middle school and high school students, take the time to look at your child's school website to get the Orientation schedule.  If you can work it out, try to attend this important session with your child.  The main benefit of Orientation is to avoid stress the first day of school.  By attending Orientation, students are able to get their schedule, apply for parking, obtain a locker, get their ID photo taken, see a few friends, and walk around the campus.  This is particularly important if your child is attending a new school! The first day of school can be crowded and hectic and it helps to know your way around in advance!

Schedules are probably the most important takeaway from Orientation.  Students like to immediately see which of their friends may be in the same class with them!  More practically, it should be an early indicator for you and your child to determine the workload and effort required to make good grades for the upcoming school year.

If your child's schedule appears daunting, take heart!  We are your support and the best choice for tutoring in Jacksonville!  We have highly educated and skilled tutors at the Tutoring Club of Jacksonville.  We can help with advanced math, science, and English classes.  We offer a Study Skills curriculum that includes goal setting, essay writing , research methods, note-taking techniques, and test-preparation strategies.  Skills that will help train your student how to be organized and how to focus on achievement.

Call us at 904-268-8556 to see how we can be an amazing resource for your child this year!

3 weeks until school starts!

The start of the new school year is on the final countdown...3 weeks from today our students will be in their new classrooms!  

Begin to gather the necessary school supplies.  Many of the retail stores have Elementary School supply lists available, by grade.  Middle and High School students may need to wait for the first day of school or you may try to access a teacher's website to look for the requested supplies.  We do recommend that you pick up some basics now though - like paper, pens, pencils, composition books, 3-prong folders, etc.

NOTE:  If you can pick up a few extra supplies to donate to children in need that would be amazing!  It will give your child a great feeling to help children who have to struggle!

And we will be reiterating this point over the next few weeks about getting back into some semblance of a school schedule.  Summer break is awesome, but it might be a good idea to insert some reading time where a good homework schedule will be.  And work on getting your children to bed a little earlier, and waking up a little earlier too.  It's so much easier to start now and avoid chaos the morning of the first day of school!