It looks like the kids will finally be beginning to go back to school in early March if the politicians are to be believed. Now that means the school start is right around the corner, and its high time to start thinking about getting organised. So we have updated our post to reflect the current challenges that our parents face. We hope you’ll find our useful back to school tips for parents worthwhile to make sure everything runs smoothly- despite coronavirus.
Firstly, to avoid stressful mornings, make a general check list of what needs to be done every morning. What needs to go in the school bag for example. To make it more fun, both for you and for your child, make the check list together, using colours and crafts. Use this time to chat about what might be worrying your child, what they’re excited about. Using a structured task to actually have a fairly serious conversation is a great way to get them to open up.
Back to School Parenting -Stationery
Your children will no doubt need new pens, rubbers and other stationery. Home schooling will have taken its toll so no doubt there will have been some snapped pencils over the past couple months! Check out our great range of personalised pencils, colouring pencils and pencil cases. Makes it more fun for the children, plus lessens the risk of missing pens forever!
On the first day, your son or daughter might be a bit nervous, even if they’ve been to school the year before. This is completely understandable given the back and forth of the last year. Make them feel a bit more positive by making an extra special breakfast. Why not try scones, pancakes, waffles or croissants? By getting their day started right you can get them relaxed and less worried.
Label, Label, Label
In a school class with a lot of children, it’s inevitable that stuff gets lost. At the moment though, that prospect is a little bit more serious. Minimise the risk with our great Back to School Packs. We have a wide selection of labels for your child’s school uniform, sports equipment, pencils, water bottle, lunch boxes, and so on (stick on name labels, iron on labels or sew on labels). In addition, all our School Packs include bag tags for your child’s school bag, and vinyl labels for hard, smooth surfaces. Moreover, you can also include your choice of clothing labels. You can choose from Stick On clothing labels, Press-and-Click clothing labels, Snappy Tags, Sew On clothing labels, Woven Iron On labels and Easy to Use Iron On labels. Practical, clever and fun!
PPE
This one is a new challenge but it might be one of the most important back to school tips for parents. Does your child walk to school? Or do they get a lift or take public transport? Then it might be necessary to equip your child with facemasks and antibacterial hand gel depending on their age. Your school should have an official line on this that you can query if you’re unsure. They might have a particular style of mask or brand of hand gel that they would recommend which could be helpful. Make sure that this is confirmed in plenty of time should you need to get some more supplies. It’s important that the facemask fits your child comfortable and securely and they know when it’s necessary to wear one.
Budget Friendly Snacks
Make some wholesome, cheap but tasty snacks for your child to bring to school. You’ll know that they get something that’s actually nutritious and you’ll save money! There are plenty of recipes around the web, for example on Pinterest. Check out our Pinterest board for some great examples.
Are you a Teacher?
Simplify things in the classroom with our classroom pack of vinyl labels, with up to 26 different names and two labels per name. You’ll avoid having to search for someone’s lost things, or trying to figure out which pupil that pencil case belongs to. I think we’re not alone in saying that teachers are total heroes and this year has opened our eyes to how difficult it is to educate our children.
Sleep
Sleep has been a struggle during lockdown for many of us. Whether that’s getting to bed at a reasonable hour or once you’re in bed being able to fall asleep. Then you have the added hassle of needing to get up for a 9am zoom call on a few hours sleep. We think the kids are likely also feeling this disruption to their sleep as well. A few weeks before the start of school why not try to help them get back into a routine. Try getting them away from screen 45mins to an hour before bed. Maybe have bath time right before bed or read a story together. Then set an alarm for your normal “school day” routine. That way, their body clock can get used to this again in preparation of going back to school.
Good luck! We hope our back to school tips for parents have been useful for you. If you have any suggestions of your own, let us know in the comments below. We’d love to hear from you!