Back to School Checklist for Parents

7/25/2017

14 things to do before the first day of school

There is just about a month left before my kiddos go back to school.

I thought this month I would give you a look into what we do to get ready for school. There is always so much to do before the first day. Here is our back to school checklist.

Here is the quick hit list. Read below for more details.

1. Doctors Appointments and Forms
2. Organization Station
3. School Supplies
4. Encourage Friendships
5. Brush up on Reading and Math
6. Lookin’ Good
7. Have Camera Ready

8. Attend School Open House
9. Connect with Teachers
10. Sleep Schedule
11. Bus Schedule
12. New Kids = New Friends
13. Bring or Buy School Lunch
14. After School Routine

1. Doctor Appointments and Forms

Schedule your kiddos doctors appointments and physicals. Send or bring any forms that need to be completed and get them submitted to your kiddos school as needed.

2. Organization Station

Update your family command center. Write important school dates on the calendar, update your kids chores and responsibilities, freshen up pens and whiteboard markers.

Ideally this should be in a high traffic area and contain a family calendar, a chore/responsibility chart, and help keep everyone organized and up to date with family schedules and communication.

The command center here has everything you need to keep your family organized. You can find where to buy and all the details of this fabulously functional and affordable home command center by checking out our previous blog post. Be sure to check out NEATLINGS Chore Chart System this will be invaluable in reminding your kiddos about their daily chores and responsibilities.

3. School Supplies

Your school should have a school supplies list available on their website. Simply print it off and have some fun picking out their gear for the next year.

Remember to label the school supplies. This is very helpful to ensure that your kids stuff doesn't get mixed up with others kiddos or if it does it can be easily identified and returned to the proper owner.

4. Encourage Friendships

My kids are not the most social, athletic, popular, or outgoing kiddos but they still all like school. I believe the single most important thing that gets kids to like school is knowing that they have friends there to connect with.

Setting aside time before school starts to let your kiddos invite friends over and reconnect will help put them at ease and ward off those first day jitters.

Use NEATLINGS Chore Chart System to help your kids earn their play dates and sleepovers by doing chores. After all it is always nicer to have company when the house and the kids rooms are organized and clean. This is also a great way to get the house organized and clean before the busy school season. It's a win win for everyone!

5. Brush up on Reading and Math

If your kiddos have been keeping up their reading and math skills up over the summer then that is fantastic! Keep up the great work.

If not then spend some time refreshing their skills.

Reading
We use our NEATLINGS Chore Chart System to ensure we have reading on the kids list of responsibilities that must be done each day.

This gets them reading every day to help brush up on their skills. I like for all my kids to do their reading at the same time. That way they are all quiet for each other and no one gets distracted. I set a timer on my phone so they all know when they have hit the time mark.

Math
Again we set this up on our NEATLINGS Chore Chart, this makes keeping track of it and remembering it so easy to do. I have them do one page of math a day. It only takes a few minutes. I use a great website that offers FREE math worksheets for grades K-6th. The website is well organized and the math sheets are quick and easy to print off. www.k5learning.com/free-math-worksheets

6. Lookin' Good

Schedule hair cuts as needed.

Go through kids clothes. Donate, hand down, or resell what no longer fits. Purchase any needed wardrobe items.

Purchase school shoes as needed.

Be familiar with your childs school dress code. As a rule of thumb if you stay away from sleeveless shirts or dresses, too short shorts or skirts, and inappropriate writing or images then you should be ok.

7. Have Camera Ready

Check that your camera battery is charged and ready.

Remember to snap some pictures at the schools open house and on the first day of school.

8. Attend the School Open House

This is such an important experience. It really helps kids work through their first day jitters before hand, lets them meet their teacher, see who else in their classroom, often they get to see where their desk is, where their locker is, and they have an opportunity to bring their school supplies to class and get organized before the first day of school.

9. Connect with Teacher

Help ensure success by communicating with your child's teacher. Are there any special things that your child's teacher needs to know to ensure a successful year? Make sure you connect with them and let them know.

10. Sleep Schedule

With a new school year upon us we once again are working towards getting our kiddos back on a regular school day schedule. Start adjusting your kids bedtime schedule now. You can do this by putting them to bed 10 minutes earlier each night and waking them up 10 minutes earlier each day until you are back on track.

A well rested kid is able to be a better learner. Want to know how much sleep your kiddo needs? Check out our back to school sleep schedule.

11. Bus Schedule

If you child will be taking the bus to school then you will need a school bus schedule. Work with your schools transportation contact to ensure that they are aware of any special arrangements. For example maybe after school your child is to be dropped off at daycare or grandmas, then they will need to know this. You may be required to complete additional forms.

12. New Kids = New Friends

Almost every year there seems to be a new kid in each of my children's classes. I always talk to my kids about being thoughtful and welcoming to the new kids. All my children have made wonderful new friends this way and helped another child adjust to their new school more easily. School is always better with friends.

13. Bring or Buy School Lunch

Post a copy of the schools lunch schedule in a high traffic area like a family station or home command center.

If your child will be buying a school lunch then be sure to have funds available in their school lunch account. Even if your child brings their own lunch it is always good to some funds in the lunch account in case they need an extra milk during lunch time.

If you child brings their own lunch then make sure they have a lunch box and that you have a few lunches planned out.

14. After School Routine

Start implementing a responsibility and chore system to keep everyone on task. Include this in your families home command center so everything is in one easy place.

We use NEATLINGS to keep us organized. It works for all ages, is expandable to work for any size family, can be set up differently for each child and is beautifully illustrated to make it easy for young ones.

Here are just some of the cards available with NEATLINGS system that will help keep your kiddos managing their after school tasks without the need for parental nagging.