Back to School Success: Tips and Strategies for Helping Your Kids Thrive This School Year

The Motherhood Kit

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Stephanie Odu is an educator and mother with a passion for reading. She has experience working in private and public institutions, as an instructional coach for other educators, and currently teaches third and fourth graders. Yamel met Ms. Odu (as her students call her) during her son William's time in preschool.
Summer is winding down and it's time to gear up for getting back to school. For some parents, this may feel like the light at the end of the tunnel, and for others, it may be the start of a long to-do list in preparation for ensuring your child's success over the next academic year. Don't panic, the gifted educator Stephanie Odu is here to share tips on how to ease back into a routine that supports kids in and out of the classroom.

Practice Makes Perfect

Reimplementing the morning and nightly routines for a smooth transition back to school can be stressful for the whole family. Stephanie recommends establishing similar routines and practices beforehand. Mock runs through the schooltime routine can be very helpful, as well as making checklists or setting reminders for yourself and your kids. Have the young kids practice opening and closing the containers that are packed for lunch or lay out clothes (that they can manage) for the next day and get dressed after they brush their teeth in the morning. Tailoring your kid's school and clothing items to suit their abilities helps foster confidence and helps the teachers that care for them (and the many other children) throughout the day. And for older kids, work through a plan of responsibilities and schedules with them so there's no last-minute "You forgot to sign this!" or "I have a project due tomorrow!" to stress over.

Supporting Success

Remember to give your kids ownership over their independence in a supportive manner. Listen to their concerns, help them understand the situation, and encourage them to find a solution. The instinct to resolve every issue your child has is natural, but teaching them how to advocate for themselves pays off more in the long run. If homework is a source of stress as a parent, remind yourself that it was your kid's job to understand it, not yours. Check any resources that accompany the homework to try and assist your child, and if anything, let the teacher know that they didn't understand it.

Approaching Teachers

Both parents and teachers want their kids to be successful. Instead of communicating from a place of offense or defense, think of teachers as partners in your child's educational journey. At the end of the day, teachers are there because they genuinely care about their development and want to work with parents, not against them, in helping kids grow. As the parent, a gracious tip to teachers about how much your child is or isn't understanding a subject can help them keep a better eye out. Overall, please let teachers know how much they're appreciated and that you trust them to make decisions for your child.

Connecting With Your Kid

Tired of the generic question and response to, "How was your day at school?" Yeah, your kids probably are too. There're better ways to strike up a conversation. Use open-ended questions like:

1. What did you (or someone else) do today that was kind?
2. What're your friends up to?
3. Who'd you sit next to at lunch?
4. How are you feeling about ____?

Stephanie has implemented a 12 Days of Kindness for her class to begin as they return to school. She's found that it's he

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