By: Elizabeth Kaplan, LCSW

The idea of going back to school can leave children with many different emotions. Children may be feeling excited, nervous, and also a little worried of the unknowns for the upcoming school year. They may also be sad that summer is coming to a close and having to get back into the routine of waking up early, studying and doing homework again. On the other hand, children may be also feeling excited to be reunited with their friends and may be happy to have a routine and structure in their day to day. Because many experience these various emotions regarding the return to school, it is important to prepare your child ahead a time for what is to come and address what they are thinking and feeling about the transition. Transitions can be challenging, and coming up with coping skills and tools can help to prepare your child for the changes. Here are ways to help your child have a smooth transition back to school:

1.     Help your child get back into their nightly routine before starting school. It is important to help acclimate your child back into a routine before starting school. During the summer, chances are if a child is at camp, they are starting later in the morning than school typically would. If your child does not have a daily structure, they may also be sleeping in and even staying up later! When it is time to go back to school, it is important to try to avoid your child feeling overwhelmed with having to go back to a routine of going to sleep and waking up earlier. Try to start getting in a routine for school one to two weeks before school starts. This way your child will start to feel acclimated in their new routine by the time school starts and will not feel overwhelmed by the new schedule the week of school.

2.     If possible, let your child know the name of their teacher and what their schedule looks like. Being fearful of the “unknown” can cause anticipatory anxiety.  Anticipatory anxiety is fear or worry that bad things could happen in the future. This can cause your child to ruminate over the things they do not know to expect or are not in control of. If you can minimize some of the unknowns, it can be relieving for your child to have an idea of what to expect.

3.     Set goals with your child for the school year. A great way to motivate your child for the upcoming school year is to talk to them about what they are looking forward to in school and what goals they want to accomplish. Perhaps they want to try out for a sports team or enhance their writing skills. Setting social goals can also be a great way to enhance your child’s social skills by encouraging and empowering them to make new friends and get out of their comfort zone. This can be a great way to discuss learning about new skills and improving on the ones your child already has.

4.     Have your child try new activities. Aside from focusing on academics, after school activities is a great way to help ease your child back into the school year and have them look forward to something after school. Have they been wanting to try dance or singing? Talk to them about some activities that they would be interested in trying and sign them up! This is a great way for them to learn new things, make new friends and have something fun to do after school.

Going back to school after a long summer break can be challenging. Transitions can be harder for some than others. If you feel your child may need support in transitioning back to school, reach out to us at hello@upsidertherapy.