I asked a co-worker when her daughter was headed back to school and her response was, NOT SOON ENOUGH. We get it, sometimes wish we could just skip over the transition process of trying to get them to sleep earlier, wake up earlier, and find BOTH of their shoes without missing the bus. Here are a few great tips to help navigate this time of year with your family.
1. Get Organized
Caregivers can start by creating a calendar for the first few months of school and writing down upcoming events and family activities. Having everything in one place will enable them to plan ahead and, more importantly, communicate with their student’s teachers about availability and any needed accommodations.
2. Begin a Sleep Schedule
It's natural for students to gravitate towards late nights and even later mornings during the lazy summer months. However, returning to a school-year sleep schedule before classes resume in September will make waking up on time much easier. They can start this process gradually by going to bed a bit earlier each week until they're back on a more normal schedule and ready to hit the books fully rested in the fall. Caregivers may need to get involved with enforcing earlier bedtimes, particularly with younger students.
3. Set Up a Workspace
Students can also get a jumpstart on the year by setting up their personal workspace. For students at brick-and-mortar schools, this could be an area to do homework. For Oregon Charter Academy Students (ORCA), who do more learning from home, their workspace should be a pleasant place to do most of their schoolwork without any distractions. They’ll build a sense of ownership and autonomy while setting up the cutting edge technology that all ORCA students receive and organizing their accompanying learning materials provided by the school.
4. Get Back Into the Habit of Learning
Being a student takes a bit of practice, and it's easy for kids to forget their successful study habits over a long summer. That's why it can be helpful for students to begin re-engaging their minds before school starts again by reading a book, doing puzzles or exploring a topic they're interested in. It’s not too late to check out some of ORCA’s summer resources listed in section 11 of last month’s blog.
Sponsored by Oregon Charter Academy, an award-winning, tuition free, K-12 online school. Join a free info session to learn more at www.oregoncharter.org