This has been such a crazy year! Lots of changes for this school year! Whether your kids will do in-person learning or distance learning or something in between, there are a few things to help them be successful and stay safe. Here are some tips that I thought would be helpful as you navigate through this crazy time. Here’s my post about deciding to send your kids to school…post. My kids are starting school on Monday. It crept up on us so quickly! Looks like we’ll be packing their bags this weekend.
In-Person Learning (Jr High/High school).
- BACKPACK. Our school is not allowing use of lockers so everything they need should fit into their backpack. Make sure that the back pack has some sort of divider for a Chromebook or laptop. Our school will be assigning those on the first day. Here’s a backpack example.
- Small pack of Tissues. My kids have allergies and school always makes them sneeze!
- Hand sanitizer. Make sure they use it a lot during the day and wash hands as soon as they get home.
- An Extra mask-in case they forget one day. I actually am making 7 for each of child-one for every day of the week. That way they can wear a clean one every day.
- Home lunch box, bagged lunch or money for school lunch.
- Pencils, pens, and a highlighter. Now is a great time to stock up.
- A slim pencil case if the backpack doesn’t have a place for writing utensils.
- A leak proof water bottle with a straw. Drinking fountains are closed so they’ll need to bring some water. The straw allows them to drink without taking off their masks.
- A single Notebook for each class or a binder (for loose papers) for each class.
- A Planner for the school year. My daughter liked to use the weekly calendar for assignments and things she needed to do each day and the monthly calendar for bigger items like sports, piano, etc. This really helped her stay organized and stay on top of her assignments.
- Mini first aid kit-Band-aids, Ponytails (for hair emergencies), Tylenol, Advil, and Aleve (all individually wrapped).
- Feminine products-Put them in a small pencil case to hide them.
- Schedule of classes and a map of the school. We like to highlight classes so they know what routes to take.
Clothes: We usually don’t buy too many clothes for school. I usually let them get one new outfit, but it is still too warm for pants so we wait to stock up. We like to go through their clothes before school starts. Here is my post on sorting through kids clothes.
Remind them about social distancing and how far 6 feet really is.
Distance learning:
Staying home offers some advantages! Besides virus worries, you also don’t have to worry about new clothes. There are a few important things to insure successful learning at home.
Make sure to set up a space in your home for each child. It needs to have some sort of table, near a plug for the computer they will be using, and paper and writing utensils nearby. My kids liked using our kitchen table and each had a place. Then when they were done, we had an area for all of the computers and paperwork.
Routines are so important for academic success. Have back to school routines in place as soon as school starts. Get everyone up early. Have breakfast and get dressed before they start “school”. I’d recommend school in the morning and play in the afternoon. This seems to work best for our family. It’s fun to give your kids mini recess breaks or brain breaks every hour or two. Here is my post on social distancing and distance learning.
Make sure that there is an adult there or someone who can help your child if they get stuck on a problem.
Whatever you decide, good luck! I’m sure there will still be lots of changes coming. Just do the best you can and try to enjoy your time…either that time with your kids, or the time when they are away!
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