Organized for School Time:
Personal 'Tips from a Teacher'!

Getting organized for school time each year can be a headache or an exciting time where your children begin to look forward to all they can accomplish in the year ahead.

As a parent it's important to be prepared for what you can do at home with your children. And there are plenty of things we can do to help our children achieve their best.

Getting organized for school time also involves knowing what activities to do with your toddlers in the years you have them at home. There are so many fun games and crafty things you can do together that can help your toddler with their reading skills, their maths skills and their physical skills.

Here are some ideas you can use as a guide:

1.

Set a homework routine ahead of time so that children know what to expect and can prepare their home study area, their home stationary supplies and their own timetable for when they will work on different subjects.

2.

Don’t fear that first day at school with these preparation tips for starting school

3.

Consider the option of homeschooling your children.

o Pro’s and Con’s
o Costs of Homeschooling
o Tips to help you become successful in Home Schooling
To help you in your research, here is a useful site full of tips for homeschooling boys http://www.homeschool-your-boys.com/

4.

Another key to being organized for school time is the time you put into preparing before the year begins. There is nothing worse than the rush of last minute purchases and packing. Students need to start thinking in advance about what they need for the year and what they are going to wear to begin to build the right mindset needed for getting through each day.

Preparation with those simple tasks helps students prepare for their days becoming more structured again and for their minds to be filled with new information every day. It can be exhausting for students who haven’t had the right build up and preparation to starting school. It can make it difficult for them to concentrate and get started on the work they need to complete. So give plenty of time to shopping for supplies, trying on uniforms, packing bags and looking at what each day will include.

5.

Starting school is all about goals and expectations and rewards. I have just finished teaching a school year where in the first half of the year, a number of the students performed very badly. One particular student had parents who put into place a regular study program for this subject and set a reward if he passed the subject. They knew he struggled with the subject but wanted him to be able to at least do the best he could do rather than giving up because it was difficult.

Due to these simple small changes, the student was motivated to regular prepare for each class, put in top effort into each assessment and went on to not only pass the subject but get the top grade! Regular rewards and reasonable study goals are very important.

6.

A good study / homework routine is key for school time. Regular study routines give students the opportunity to develop good learning and study habits. It’s too late if you try and teach students this once they are in their final year of schooling as the stress will be too great for them. Set a timetable at home for when students will focus on particular subjects, read over their work from the week, make sure they understand what was covered in class and do any work set by the teacher.

I was a student who was a steady achiever but not good at performing under pressure. I’m still the same in other areas of life. Having a regular study routine allowed me to do well throughout school even though I was very weak in exam time. I went on to excel in university also. So don’t ever underestimate the value of a regular study and homework routine.

All the best with getting organized for school time!

Helpful Links

Are you looking for smart games? Smart-kid-educational-games.com provides educational games for kids and advice for parents!

Happychildrensbooks.com is a excellent site that offers wonderful information on books for kids. There are books that are full of character-building games to others that emphasize the importance of healthy eating habits, plus some helpful ideas for parents.