By Jeff Ursino
Last year I got the chance to talk to several teachers about the upcoming school year and what parents could do to better prepare their children for it. As the beginning of the new school year draws near I thought it would be a good time to re-visit what I was told and how we can all help our children.
An initial point that was made to me during that conversation was that parents needed to help their children to be self-reliant and stand up for themselves. School can be a daunting experience, especially for younger children. Children need to learn to stand up for themselves and ask for what they want or need especially in new surroundings. When a parent encourages a child to use “their words” and to stand up for themselves, it helps to build self-esteem. A strong sense of self-worth will only help to make the transition to the new school year smoother.
Another advantage to encouraging your children to stand up for themselves is to prepare them for bullying in school. Though there has been an effort, both nationally and locally, to end bullying studies indicate that up to 70% of school age children are bullied. In addition, studies show that children who are bullied are more likely to have attendance issues and fall behind in their studies. By giving your children the tools to say what they want and to stand up for themselves you will be helping them to deal with any bully they may run across and to be more successful in school.
Encourage a Positive Attitude
Something else a parent can do to help children make the transition to the new school year easier is to talk to your children about how fun and exciting the new school year will be. By helping your children to have a more positive outlook on school it will help your student deal with any anxiety they may be feeling and assist them in being more successful in their academic career. As a parent, if we talk about what we learned in school and how we use it or fun things that we did as students at school it will help our children to look forward to the school year and be more engaged once the year starts.
Read and Review With Your Child
A final point made was how important it is to read with your children and review math facts and concepts. Teachers estimate that it takes up to two months to get students back to where they were when the previous school year ended. If parents ask their children to read to them during the summer months and review math facts and figures your child will be more apt to learn new concepts once the new school year starts. The summer “brain drain” is not necessarily inevitable. By reading with your children and making a game out of Math a parent will not only gain more one on one time with their kids but they will also help them to be more successful once the school year starts. For older students finding a few books that they would like to read or find interesting over the summer will help to keep their reading and writing skills fresh as the new year starts.
The school year starts on August 17th. By helping our children to speak up for themselves, get excited about what they are about to learn and to encourage reading and math at home a parent or caregiver will help to make our local students from the first day of Kindergarten to the last day of high school be more successful.