Whether you’re going to a new school or getting ready for the new school year at the same school, there’s quite a transition from Summer to Fall. Not only does the weather change, but our schedules change.
We go from Summer where we get to just enjoy our days and not doing any work besides some Summer reading, to 8 hour work days. I remember as a young kid getting back to school and the math work seeming like rocket science.
I just wasn’t used to solving mathematical problems. After a few days, I remembered the formulas I had been taught. What would’ve been better is if I was ready to go the first week of school.
Review What You Worked on Previously
One huge tip before starting school again is to review the major things you learned in the previous year. Especially, math formulas. Go over the formulas that you learned the previous year and especially if you’re going to be learning new formulas that are built on that one.
Summer reading is great, but it doesn’t help you with math and science. Math is really the most important thing to remember as you’ll use that in almost any profession.
English is easier because you still use English over the summer. You’re speaking to people every day even on video games. What might get lost is grammar and reading comprehension.
So during the Summer, have your kids do some minimal writing to make sure their grammar is correct. You can have them use an auto-correct program and they’ll learn just fine. Our brains are excellent at making associations so your kids will quickly understand when they’re making these mistakes.
If they don’t know when and why they keep making the mistake then there’s a good question for your new English teacher.
Summer Reading
Now almost every kid hates summer reading. You may ask why that is. Well, it’s because they have no interest in those books. They’re picked by people who are not in touch with your kids interests. So rather than having them cram the reading in the last week before school and reading Cliff Notes, take them to a book store and let them pick out something that interests them.
Even if it’s a how to guide or something for dummies. This way they’ll get used to reading something that they want to extract information out of. Reading for entertainment is great, but that’s not the purpose of summer reading. It’s usually something that they get tested on, so it’s like summer homework.
If you frame it as something the kid is interested in, they’ll have much better results.
Organization
Something I loved about back to school as a kid was going to the store to get all of my supplies I needed. Having all of my supplies organized when I started back at school made me feel so much more motivation for learning. It made me excited to work because I had tools. As humans, we love using tools and if your kid can take pride in their tools, they’ll be so motivated to use them.
I know summer is a busy time going on vacation, working, and watching the kids, but trust me when I tell you to take your kid with you get their supplies. They’ll be able to pick the colors of their notebooks, even cool designs that are in their favorite movies or tv shows. Let them take part in it. Give them the supplies list and let them scavenge for it.