Supporting Families During Back-to-School Transitions: 5 Key Strategies for Service Professionals
Discover essential strategies for family service professionals to help families transition back to school after summer break.
Back to School Stress
Back-to-school season is upon us, and sometimes that comes with shifts to schedules, navigating new routines, and general anxiety about the unknown for families. Whether it’s adjusting to a new school or just a new class schedule, over the next few weeks social adjustments are on the horizon for millions of students across the U.S. Families. With a solid foundation, good communication, and developed coping mechanisms families can better navigate these new challenges together. As a family service professional, you can help by supporting families with their communication strategies and stress management, especially in this time of transition.
Tip 1: Encourage Routine Re-establishment
As always, it’s helpful to have routines around bedtime as well as early mornings so that the first few weeks of school are a smooth transition to the family’s system. This could look like earlier bedtimes and a set wake-up time, less screen time, more reading, or a shift in meal time.
As a family services professional, you can provide your families with a more customized schedule to help them adapt to their new routines, including after-school activities or care, and new commutes.
Additionally, it’s helpful for children and parents alike to practice consistency in their school day routines to reduce stress and anxiety. Whether that’s walking to the bus stop, finding the best routine for carpooling and pickup, or walking to and from school as a family to learn the route, preparing together can go a long way in building empathy and feeling supported and connected during a new period of transition.
Tip 2: Foster Open Conversations About School
- Be available to have an open and honest conversation between parents and children about the school year.
- It is important to validate children’s emotions and provide reassurance.
- Share techniques for helping parents normalize and address their child’s feelings.
Every new school year comes with highs and lows. When families foster open conversations about school, what’s challenging, and what’s great, they’re better able to navigate issues and potentially get ahead of problems before they escalate. It’s helpful to provide parents with prompts or questions for their children to understand what they’re learning in their classes and how they feel about their teachers, or talk through non-academic aspects of school like social dynamics.
The stresses and challenges students feel today might feel other-worldly to their parents, and it’s important to encourage parents to validate their children’s feelings and emotions, providing reassurance and support. You can provide techniques to the families you work with to help normalize and help regulate their children’s emotional response to whatever they are facing, reinforcing that it’s easier to tackle as a family who can have open and honest conversations about struggles, as well as celebrations.
Tip 3: Guide Families in Organizing Together
- Suggest involving children in back-to-school preparations like shopping for supplies and setting up a homework space.
- Provide checklists or organizational tools that families can use to stay on track.
- Help families create a checklist to ensure all necessary tasks are underway before school starts.
- Offer tips for breaking down tasks into manageable steps for parents and children.
A big component of lowering the stress levels around going back to school is getting organized. Whether it’s collaborating on schedules, or ensuring all of the students have what they need to succeed, you can encourage families to tackle preparing for the year together.
Whether it’s making a big list and making the most of back-to-school shopping, or setting up a designated space for homework activities, families who take the time to organize together are often better set up for success in dealing with the unexpected as the school year starts.
By breaking it down into small pieces, families can reduce the feelings of anxiety and unknowns. They can also identify questions they may have for their student’s teachers and can ask them face-to-face during teacher meet and greets or curriculum night, versus relying on emails or school communication platforms.
Tip 4: Prioritize Emotional Well-being
- Recommend mindfulness or relaxation techniques that families can practice together to manage anxiety.
- It is important to model for families positive self-talk and remind children of past successes.
- Offer suggestions for confidence-building activities that families can do together.
Children model what they see at home, so providing parents with the tools they need to help them practice mindfulness or relaxation techniques will help everyone manage anxieties and stress around the back-to-school season. As a professional, you can suggest mindfulness apps or local programs to help parents unwind, encouraging them to bring kids along for the process of learning by doing.
Yoga, meditation, or even a walk around the block can be a great way to take breaks and clear their minds. Walks can be especially helpful for parents and children to connect and talk about their days and the challenges kids face at school.
Beyond mindfulness, encouraging positive self-talk can bolster confidence and resilience throughout the school year. As parents model self-esteem and build their child up with encouragement and positive reinforcement, the child can then grow into their most capable, confident self. Professionals can recommend confidence-building activities that families can do together, including trying new activities and learning as a family a new sport or skill.
Tip 5: Balance Preparation with Fun and Relaxation
- Advise families to incorporate fun activities into their back-to-school preparation to keep the atmosphere light.
- Suggest creative ways to blend preparation with play, such as themed family nights.
- Recommend planning a special Autumn outing or family activity to celebrate the new school year.
- Provide ideas for low-cost or community-based events that families can enjoy
With good preparation and planning also comes time to relax and have fun. When you’re making sure your families have a solid plan in place, encourage them to take space and time to enjoy each other with the new season ahead. This can look like heading to the apple orchard, enjoying a family movie night, or playing games together.
As they plan for the journey stresses of the school year ahead, you can also propose they plan for a celebration after all of the hard work is behind them. By planning their end-of-year celebration when the year starts, it gives everyone something to look forward to. It can be as simple as a low-cost, community-based event or planning next summer’s family vacation. No matter how they want to celebrate, giving them space to find the joy and time for reflection of all of their accomplishments will make the year more enjoyable for all parties.
Conclusion
- As a recap the five strategies we discussed in this blog
- 1.) Encourage Routine Re-establishment
- 2.) Foster Open Conversations About School
- 3.) Guide Families in Organizing Together
- 4.) Prioritize Emotional Well-being
- 5.) Balance Preparation with Fun and Relaxation
- Patience and ongoing support are crucial as families adjust to the new school year.
- Depending on the family, it may be a good idea to suggest follow-up sessions or check-ins to monitor progress.
Planning and preparing for the school year can go a long way in setting families up for success as they embark on a new school year. Cutting down on jitters and stresses can set the tone for an easier transition between the summer and the rigors of any academic year, and allow families to be mindful of how they’re supporting each other during the new adventures they are facing.
As a family services professional, you can support them through your flexibility and hold them accountable to stay dedicated to their new approaches to the season. You can offer additional check-ins or sessions to help them navigate the weeks leading up to, and through the first month of school to keep everyone aligned and uplifted.
Call to Action
- Parenting Journey encourages sharing of experiences or additional tips in professional forums or during team meetings.
Supporting families in this way takes extra effort, which in turn means people in the family services industry could also use additional support during this time. Don’t be afraid to ask your networks for plans and examples of what’s worked with families in your area in the past, or iterate on what you’ve done to find an even better solution as needs change.
As always, Parenting Journey is here with you every step of the way as you help strengthen families and communities. Explore our upcoming trainings to support your work, both during back to school and the rest of the year.
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