It’s that special time of year again, kids are going back to school!
Well, sort of.
Back to school, for many families, looks a lot different this year – instead of attending classes on their school campuses, many kids are back to socially distanced learning from the comfort of their own homes.
We know how hard online learning can be for your kids and for you, especially as many parents are working remotely as well.
Even if your kids will be doing in-class attendance this year, we’re sure there are still some nerves for navigating this new educational landscape as COVID-19 remains an underlying threat to our health and our safety.
Nevertheless, it’s crucial that we make this school year – like every school year – count for our kids.
Check out our 5 back-to-school tips for in-class and at-home learning below!
1. Listen to your child’s concerns: If your child is returning to school during the pandemic or learning online, as a parent it’s so important to listen to you child’s fears and concerns. Whether it’s nerves about safety protocols like wearing a mask all day, or getting enough attention in their online classes, it’s important to empathize with your child’s feelings in a reassuring matter. This will help them cope with their new school environments and feel comfortable enough to come to you with any future issues.
2. Communicate with your child’s teachers: If your child is attending classes in person, it’s important to communicate regularly with your child’s teachers and the school administration to understand the safety measures that are being implemented. Hopefully the school has created an open line of communication, but if not, you’ll want to find out what changes have been made to the classrooms, hallways, cafeterias, and buses to make social distancing more effective and enforced, their masking policies, the use of shared equipment, what cleaning services they’ll be implementing, and how the school will be handling positive COVID-19 cases.
If you’re child will be learning online, regular contact with your child’s teachers will help you understand the expectations for the new semester and ensure that your kid does not fall behind in his or her classes. Most teachers have already been equipped with additional recommendations or resources for families if things begin to feel a bit too overwhelming.
3. Supplement the curriculum: Whether your child is taking classes online or in-person, a great tip for maximizing their educational experience is to supplement the curriculum with extracurricular studies, additional educational forums or resources, or online tutoring. Check out this list we put together for various educational and recreational activities you can do with your child to boost brainpower!
4. Stay up-to-date on everyone’s wellness exams: Wellness exams are important even when we’re not in a pandemic, but especially as we navigate COVID-19 it’s crucial that family health becomes a priority. Scheduling regular wellness exams will ensure that you and your children stay as healthy as possible during the school year and allow you to catch any symptoms of COVID-19 early.
5. Get organized: No matter which way you look at it, this is a stressful school year for everyone. If you want to cut down on the chaos, it’s imperative that you keep your kids organized. Whether it’s their physical surroundings at home or keeping track of their classes and assignments, maintaining a strong level of organization throughout the school year will keep your kids more productive, allow them to do better work, and thus get more out of their learning experience.
No matter what the school year brings, Jill’s Tutors is here to support your child’s educational success!
Whether your student has fallen behind in school or is struggling with their online or in-person learning requirements, we’re here to help. Simply visit our website jillstutors.com, call or text 512-598-5135 or email us at jillstutors@gmail.com, and we’ll set you up with one of our talented nationwide educators.