Tips for getting your kids ready to go back to school

Well Mamas and Dads, It’s that time of year again! It involves a big yellow school bus, a desk, and homework! Most children dread going back to school after a long fun adventurous summer. However you may be surprised that most children actually can’t wait to go back to school! But, that’s their little secret. So, shhhhh! Don’t tell the kids us moms know!

Most children who are in kindergarten and first and second grade haven’t gotten to the “I don’t want to go” in their school career yet, it’s the older ones influencing the younger ones. Older siblings saying, “I don’t want to go” has a big impact on younger children. If you have this problem, you should try to sit down with your older child(ren) and explain to them they need to set a good example for their younger sibling. Sometimes if they know they’re a role model, it will make them feel good that someone looks up to them, and will do what they need and are supposed to do. This in turn will make your life easier at 6:00am. Some children don’t want to go because of bullies, others don’t want to go because they are bored, and then there are the new excuses that you can’t help laugh at!

Rules for School by: Alec Greven is a great start to a school year. Use this story as a bed time story, as a night time family reading, or just an anytime reading. It’s a very cute story.

RULE 1: You have to let go of summer.

This could pose a problem for a child that already doesn’t want to get up for school. Sleeping in, with your head under the pillow and under a nice cozy blanket could really make school mornings a nightmare.

TIP: Go into your child(ren)’s room with a nice and cheery voice, (even if you’re not very cheery in the morning), and say “good morning!” Then if your child(ren) is/are stubborn, and still don’t get up, take their blanket and pillow, and take it out of the room with you. This will take away that nice cozy feeling from sleeping all night. They will most likely need to use the bathroom, and thus, they have arisen!

Rule 3: You’re going to be nervous- Get over it!

Starting school could be a challenge to some children, not because the work is hard, not because they have to get up, but because they have butterflies in their tummies and are scared about their first day and what it will be like. Such as, for some examples, What if there is a new teacher? What if I don’t know anybody? What if I forget to wear underwear? What if my teacher is new, and I don’t know her and she is some scary outer space creature, that only assigns tons of homework that is impossible to complete, who forces us to wash her feet, and brush her hair that is made of snakes? You get the point! Children have some wild imaginations, at times and it’s good and encouraged in school. However, other times it can be worrisome, at other times it can be difficult, and sometimes, even scary what children’s imaginations can bring. But without an imagination, life would be simple, plain, and boring.
If you remember when you started school, maybe every year, maybe just when you started the new level like kindergarten to first grade, fifth grade to sixth grade(middle school), or eighth grade to ninth grade (high school), you were nervous possibly about new people, maybe a new teacher, or perhaps more difficult or the amount of homework, less time to have fun with your friends, and much more. Just remember you were there once. Sometimes it helps to share your stories about being nervous, or scared with your children.

My nine year old little brother has PTSD, and he gets angry and has a temper tantrum when he is scared, and never actually comes out and says that he is scared, so it’s hard to figure out when he is actually mad, scared, or something else. I have been doing this since he started school; I call him the night before he goes to his first day, and I talk with him, and he is usually giving my mother a hard time. I ask him what’s wrong and he doesn’t say much at first, but I’ll start telling him a funny story about when I was in school.

I more often than not tell him about the time that I had started a new school after we moved to a new city when I was in elementary school. I was nervous about starting the second grade in a new school, in a new city, not to mention a new state. I was so scared when I arrived at the new school that I walked into the classroom, and ended up walking into the teachers desk, knocking off all her papers, and her huge glass apple that fell to the floor, and shattered into millions of pieces! The whole class laughed at me! I did make friends that first day though, and I couldn’t wait to go back day after day. I had embarrassed myself, and showed that I didn’t look where I was going, but I still made friends and had a great day, and in the end that is all that matters. Naturally my brother laughs, and then goes to get ready for bed.

Rule 4: Get your Mom on your side.

Sometimes, we moms are more excited about school than our kids are! We are so excited we try to make everything right for their first day. We pick out their clothes, we pack their lunches, we get them up much earlier than needed, we brush their hair, and we have them out at the bus stop 20 minutes before it arrives- Just in case… Let’s face it; this is for us, not for them. Let them be independent, and be free thinkers. Let them pick out their own clothes for the first day. Let them decide what they want for lunch and let them help you make it. Let them get up 30 minutes earlier just so they can get ready at their pace, and do something they want to do before they head off to that first day. Letting your child be stress free, and calm when they start their first day can make all the difference in the world. Not only will it make their morning go smoother, and make them less nervous, your morning will go a lot smoother too.

The author of the book Rules for School By Alec Greven is nine years old. He has been there done that when it comes to school, from first day nervousness, to last day excitement for summer. He is a phenomenal writer, and most important of all a kid himself! Since he is only nine years old, he is an author who can relate to his readers because he is their age, and the children enjoy his books because they know that someone their age wrote it, and it gives them inspiration that they too can do something great. There are more books by Alec Greven, How to Talk to Moms, and How to Talk to Girls. Those two books will get some great enjoyment by the children, and it will make you smile knowing that they are being inspired by the book’s author.


If you remember when you started school, maybe every year, maybe just when you started the new level like kindergarten to first grade, fifth grade to sixth grade (middle school), or eighth grade to ninth grade (high school), you were nervous possibly about new people, maybe a new teacher, or perhaps more difficult or the amount of homework, less time to have fun with your friends, and much more. Just remember you were there once. Sometimes it helps to share your stories about being nervous, or scared with your children.

My nine year old little brother has PTSD, and he gets angry and has a temper tantrum when he is scared, and never actually comes out and says that he is scared, so it’s hard to figure out when he is actually mad, scared, or something else. I have been doing this since he started school; I call him the night before he goes to his first day, and I talk with him, and he is usually giving my mother a hard time. I ask him what’s wrong and he doesn’t say much at first, but I’ll start telling him a funny story about when I was in school.

I more often than not tell him about the time that I had started a new school after we moved to a new city when I was in elementary school. I was so scared to start the second grade in a new school, in a new city, not to mention a new state. I got so scared I that when I walked into the classroom, I walked into the teachers desk and knocked off all of her papers on her desk, and the whole class laughed at me. Naturally he laughs, and then goes to get ready for bed.

This helps him to think of something funny when he walks into that new classroom for the first time, and his teachers have told us that he is usually giggling as he is walking into the classroom, and doesn’t even walk near the teacher’s desk the whole first day, and if he does he is giggling the whole time!

This is just my example of something that will helped my little brother conquer the fear and nervousness of the first day. What are some ways that you help make the fear go away? Please feel free to share your ways in the comments!


1.Make sure their bed time is relaxing and calm, and that it is early enough that morning times are not a hassle, and so there is enough sleep.

2.Eat a healthy breakfast consisting of brain food

Below are some suggestions for a complete brain smart healthy breakfast::

granola cereal, yogurt, a sliced apple
scrambled eggs, toast, orange juice
veggie omelet, bran muffin, fruit with yogurt
whole-grain pancakes or waffles topped with berries and/or yogurt, milk
whole-wheat zucchini pancakes topped with fruit, milk
french toast topped with fruit, orange juice or milk
low-fat cheese melted on toast with a piece of fruit
low-fat cream cheese on a whole-grain bagel, orange juice
peanut butter and banana slices on an english muffin, milk

3. Always go to school prepared. It might help to pick out your school outfit, pack your lunch, and organize your backpack the night before so there’s no rushing the next morning.

4. Make sure to tell them if they don’t understand something, to always ask someone, whether it is a teacher, a parent or a classmate, and if they still don’t understand, it’s okay to say so, and to ask for more help with it.

5. Tell them to always make sure they try their best at everything they do!

6. Smile & be happy!

Please feel free to list any other suggestions you may have in the comments section, I will put up a future blog post complied of other suggestions…

To us moms, or dads, there are two options after they are at their first day of school. Either you’re going to cry because your baby is growing up (which is what I will do when my oldest son first starts school) OR you’re going to go jump for joy you have some free time, well at least more than you did before school started!

If you are sad about them starting school, because they are growing up, take pictures on their first day. Make a scrap book about it, and make sure you are waiting with the camera on their return home, or the run out to your car to catch that moment when they had fun and learned so much, and are excited to tell you all about it. Keep a notebook handy because if you are making a scrapbook journaling in it will be key, so when they are 14 and starting high school, you can pull out that book and show them what they did, and why they were so excited to start school. Maybe they will remember it, maybe not, but you will.

Have a Great School Year Everyone!

Disclaimer: I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms bloggingprogram to be eligible to get a HarperCollins book set. For moreinformation on how you can participate, click here.