5 tips to ease kids back into in-person learning

If your child attended school remotely last year, adjusting to in-person learning will require some logistical organization. If the morning routine needs some work, create a checklist to make sure you’re not running late in the morning. Important reminders can include making sure your little one’s bags and lunches are packed, that they have all the jackets and supplies they need, and that you are aware of pick-up times and extracurricular plans.

Creating a routine is a great way to help your child get back in the groove after what may have been an unpredictable and touch-and-go year. Johns Hopkins Medicine recommends establishing a routine in the days leading up to class, through actions like putting them to bed at a regular time and selecting outfits for the day.

Help your child put together a bucket list for the 2021-22 school year. Having a list of goals and things they want to accomplish will help them get excited for the year to come. Whether they want to shoot for straight A’s, play a new sport, or improve their reading or math skills, a list of goals is a great way to help them strategize and have a vision for what success will look like back to school.

Johns Hopkins Medicine also recommends helping ease your child’s back-to-school anxiety with prizes or fun activities they can look forward to for separating from parents to attend class. Like a bucket list or vision board, this is a great way to give them something to look forward to and persevere through any hesitance they may have about returning to school.

Is your child stressed about returning to the classroom, or are they looking forward to seeing their teachers and friends again? A great way for parents to gauge what their children’s trepidations or expectations are is to ask them and talk through their feelings, and take note of their attitude and how it may change over the first few weeks of class.