Back to School Tips for an Easy Transition

Can you believe it is almost September? It’s almost that time again, for kids, teens and college students to go back to school. If the thought of shopping for school supplies and clothing fills you with dread, I’ve got some pointers to save time and energy.

In the past, I have visited several stores to get the best deals for the long list of school supplies. I don’t do that anymore. It takes too much time. But I think it makes sense to find out which store has the lowest prices on the bulk of things you need, and purchase there.

One way I’ve found to make the back to school easier is to start preparing several weeks early.  Of course, being an organizer, I encourage you to take some inventory first. And that means LISTS!

10 Tips for Quick Back to School prep

1. Inventory clothing: find out what still fits from last year.
2. Inventory school supplies: doing a quick inventory of what is left over from last year will save you money, and you won’t end up with 20 pink erasers or 25 one subject notebooks filling up cabinet space.
3. Make separate lists for clothing and school supplies needed. Does your child need any special sporting supplies, like running shoes or soccer cleats?
4. Do your research: can you purchase some of your school supplies online and have it shipped, or have an order ready and waiting for you to pick up in the store?
5. Start to get your kids (and yourself) up earlier to prep them for the earlier wake-up time. Experts recommend using 15-minute increments. Start a few weeks early. That way, you’ll have one week at the actual wake time to get everyone’s internal clocks acclimated. Less grumpiness all around!
6. Practice your morning routine. Everybody gets up, eats breakfast, brushes, gets backpacks ready, etc.
7. Speaking of backpacks, make sure and have them loaded with everything but the lunch 1 to 2 days before school starts.
8. Lunch supplies: Make sure you have a good supply of your family’s favorite school snacks.
9. Talk about after school routines. Are they going to walk, bike, take the bus or get picked up? This may be different from other years. And talk about getting rides, and checking in with Mom or Dad if after school plans change so s/he doesn’t freak out.
10. Make a plan for yourself. With children going to school, you may have more time on your hands. Instead of just going with the flow, take time to think about what YOU want to do. Dust off the piano and start playing again? Take a class? Write or paint? Having a plan will keep your mind and spirit active and give you some much needed ME time.
    

      ~ Jenny