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July 26, 2014
by Christie Hunter

Back to School Stresses For Moms: How to Manage From Summer to Schedules

July 26, 2014 04:55 by Christie Hunter  [About the Author]

Summer vacations are a time for fun and frolic for the young ones, giving them a reprieve from their education, making space for them to unwind and relax. However, this time is all the more hectic for mothers who have to make sure that their young ones also use this time constructively. Many concerned mothers enroll their children in summer camps for the duration of summer.

Vacation Choices

Some parents take their children on a vacation in which they can go sightseeing and take part in other extracurricular activities to stay occupied. Others head off to calmer shores to treat themselves and their children for a well-earned vacation. However, mothers as well as the children may have a rough time adjusting to their normal routine once they return.

Some Chaos is Normal

First of all, the panicky parent should realize that it’s normal to find yourself a bit overwhelmed after the sudden realization that the heaving weight of responsibilities is at hand. Almost instantly the first concern of mothers is to rise early, serve their children a healthy breakfast and get them to school on time or have them ready for the bus in a timely manner.

Be Proactive in Your Child’s Education

What follows immediately is to orient themselves of their child’s new curriculum and developing a familiarity with the teachers of the new grade. For quality parental supervision, it is ideal that parents routinely keep abreast their child’s academic progress rather than being passive observers. A lot of parents turn a blind eye to the education of their children which may cause long term hindrance in the mental and intellectual growth of their child.

Make the Commute Easy

With some foresight and planning, all of these responsibilities can be fulfilled at the convenience of the concerned parent. The burden of driving your kids to school can be alleviated by simply being part of a carpool program where mothers take turns to drive each other’s children to school. That way, a lot of time and effort can be saved. There are also considerable cost savings in terms of fuel costs in these sort of arrangements. Or you can simply resort to using the school bus. In fact, the majority of children avail school buses to make the daily commute.

Know What’s Coming Your Way

Secondly, concerned mothers can take spare time to briefly review their children’s curriculum, giving themselves a fair idea of what knowledge and concepts will be imparted to their children. They can also request an overview usually provided by many schools that gives a general idea of each subject, detailing the areas of study for that particular term.

Help Out Where You Can

Mothers are advised to guide their children in completing homework and acquainting their little ones of extra nuggets of information that give them added knowledge on their subject. Aside from taking part in school teacher meetings to get relevant feedback on their child’s academic performance, many concerned mothers also develop support groups for at home moms focusing on the education of their children by weekly or monthly meet ups.  They meet and discuss the problems and issues they face when it comes to their child’s education. From these groups, instead of operating in isolation, many mothers draw vital support and information sharing that is a brilliant aid in bringing about a positive impact in their child’s education. Being involved will eventually reduce your back to school stress.

Reading Helps Bring Structure

There is also one final and perhaps the most vital tip for mothers concerned about giving their child a good education. That is inculcating the habit of reading in their household. This usually is the single most neglected habit in most households. With so many distractions around us such as television, computers and now smartphones, picking up a good book to read almost seems like an archaic activity. Yet investing in books and developing the habit in their household has long term benefits. Reading without a doubt brings structure into your and your child’s lives. So rather than you having to run after your child for a few hours, you can enjoy watching them sit in a corner with a good book and use their time wisely.

Reading provides a great avenue to learn about a lot of varied subjects. The essential component to develop the habit of reading in a child is to first take out the time and start reading to them in their infancy. Being exposed to books at a very early age, children are more likely to appreciate the importance of books later in their lives. A well-stocked bookshelf is half the investment that one would make in a flat screen television. By making books readily accessible, mothers already make the first crucial step in developing an abiding respect and love for knowledge in their children.

Start Forming a Schedule Well Before School Starts

Parents often make the mistake of putting their kids to bed on time only once school has started. This is a huge mistake because 3 months of not having to wake up early in the morning can offset a child’s schedule. Therefore, start putting them to bed early a few weeks before school starts. That way, they will wake up on time and not be groggy when going to school. 

With the set of challenges and opportunities, mothers should realize that transitioning from vacation mode to normal routine is a part of the process of perhaps the most important of their duties, that being of providing a quality education to their child. It should be treated as a calling rather than a simple chore.

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Porpopra.T. (2014). 10 Easy Steps to a Carpool Solution for Working Moms. Retrieved May 14, 2014, from http://www.about.com

Scott, E. (2011, April 25). How To Relieve Back To School Stress and Anxiety. Retrieved May 14, 2014, from http://www.about.com

Elsham, K. (2013). Ease back to school stress with these six tips. Retrieved May 14, 2014, from http://specialsections.suntimes.com

Goodman, C. (2013 August 13). Back to school stress hits parents, too. Retrieved May 14, 2014, from http://www.miamiherald.com

McLaughlin, C. (2013). Ease Back-to-School Stress. Retrieved May 14, 2014, from http://www.schoolfamily.com

About the Author

Christie Hunter

Christie Hunter is registered clinical counselor in British Columbia and co-founder of Theravive. She is a certified management accountant. She has a masters of arts in counseling psychology from Liberty University with specialty in marriage and family and a post-graduate specialty in trauma resolution. In 2007 she started Theravive with her husband in order to help make mental health care easily attainable and nonthreatening. She has a passion for gifted children and their education. You can reach Christie at 360-350-8627 or write her at christie - at - theravive.com.


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