Preparing Your Child For A Successful School Year.

When we talk about preparing your child for a successful school year, I have noticed that a lot of people think it is all about education and academics. I have also realized that a lot of parents get confused when a new academic year is starting. I was also confused in the past. I didn\’t know where to start from and how to support my children.

I began a lot of studies and I realized that children also struggle with a new school year even if it\’s the same school. They get agitated and curious at the start of a new school year. A new school year is not just all about academics, there are a lot more to consider.

Many times, I have also realized that parents don\’t prepare their children enough. This has caused a lot of confusion on the part of the children.

Here are the aspects to consider in a new school session:

1- Academic success

2- Social success

3- Emotional success

4- Health

5- Chores

6- Maintaining Success

The skills to be able to do chores can never be overemphasized. I noticed a lot of parents take away chores once their children resume school. It is wrong. You do not need to take away the child\’s responsibility once school resumes.

Maintaining success can be very tasking for our children. So you must teach your children all of these. There is a need to check into other aspects of a child\’s life apart from academics. There are skills that your child needs to thrive aside from academic success.

A new school year doesn\’t start when the school is about to resume. It starts the very day the previous academic session ended. As parents, you are supposed to begin preparation immediately when an academic session ends and not when the school is about to resume. For example, if a school year ended July 23rd, you are supposed to have started preparing your child for the next session that same July 23rd.

-Academic Success: Academic success starts with the kind of school that your child attends. Does the school support your child\’s learning style and pattern? For instance, if your child is a kinesthetic learner, you will need to enroll your child in a school that has a good playground. In fact, if you take a boy child to a school that doesn\’t understand the play, you are going to shut down a part of his development.

When it comes to having children excel in their academics, the first thing is choosing the right school. The school is an integral part of how successful your child\’s education will be. So you might need to choose a school that supports the kind of learner that you have.

Do you know that a gifted child is a special child? A gifted child might not survive in a normal school setting. A lot of children have suffered from the ignorance of their parents. Your child could be suffering the ignorance of you not choosing the right school. EVERY SCHOOL IS NOT MEANT FOR EVERY CHILD. That a school is best doesn\’t make it the best fit for your child. Your child might not thrive in that school. You also need to understand where the connection lies.

The second point to note on academic success is:

Create An Effective Study Environment. If you want your child to study, you need to create an effective study environment. In creating an effective study environment, please take note of the following:

-Understand your child\’s learning style.

–Work on removing the morning chaos in the routines. All the yelling, shouting, and chaos that you create in the morning shut down the learning center of your child. DISCIPLINE IS NOT AN EMERGENCY. You can always address things later. You also need to understand the place of timing in your discipline.

–You need to set your children ready to learn. What do you do to stimulate learning in the morning? For me, we do music to stimulate learning in my home. A child should never go to bed upset nor should they get to school feeling very overwhelmed from shouts and screams.

–Check the nutrition of your child? It has been proven that food rich in whole grain, fiber, and protein helps children learn better. What are your children eating in the morning?

-You also need to check the right amount of sleep. Most preschoolers should get at least a minimum of 10 hours of sleep per day.

-You need to teach organizational skills.

-Teach time management

-Teach your children study skills.

-You need to understand the disciplinary policy in that school. What is the school policy on bullying? Don\’t just assume, ask relevant questions.

-You need to get involved. I see parents send their house help and drivers to represent them during PTA meetings. This leaves me astonished and wonders what kind of system you are creating. For you to raise a king, you need to be involved.

-Make time to talk with your child every day. Children who talk with their parents every day perform better academically. It\’s been proven that children who get connected with their children thrive excellently well in their academics.

Finally, neglect is a form of abuse. When you neglect your children, you are abusing them. Stop abusing your children in the name of \’I do not have time. Create time for your children.