How to transition from summer to school
It's time to transition from fun-loving summer to a studious school year.
We all know kids need a routine before school starts to get them used to early bed times and early wake times. Plus, a well-rested brain is a learning brain. Here are some tips on how to get the most brain power for your kids so they are ready to learn, absorb and be excited about it when school starts.
In order to have a smooth start to school, children of all ages need to be well rested. As a former teacher, one thing I observed most was how tired most children were during the first hour of school. If you want your child to be ready to jump into action and learn, they need to be well rested. According to the National Sleep Foundation, preschoolers need 11-13 hours of sleep in a 24-hour period, elementary aged children need 10-11 hours of sleep, and middle schoolers need 9-9.5 hours of sleep.
The Three "Rs" (Reading, Writing and Arithmetic) should be done daily.
• Reading: Children should be read to or read to themselves for at least 20 minutes a day.
• Writing: For the little ones, break those crayons in half to force pincer grasp. Children should write something every day.
• Arithmetic: Daily math practice of basic skills will strengthen their knowledge and allow them to grasp new concepts. Math is a building subject. Counting leads to addition/subtraction, which leads to multiplication/division and so on. A child who knows their basic skills very well will have a higher success rate and positive experience in mathematics.
Different games can also help build several skills and can be played with modified rules for each age group: Scrabble, Battleship, Monopoly, Risk, Uno,card games (Go Fish and Battle) and puzzles.
Lastly, limit kids' screen time and replace it with a print out or worksheet page of reading or math work. The Internet has hundreds of websites that offer free worksheets for whatever skills your child needs to practice.
Preschool daily practice: Recognizing ABCs of upper and lower case, number recognition, drawing with broken crayons, tracing the ABCs, counting objects to 10, simple addition and subtraction, and being read to for 20 minutes a day.
Early elementary daily practice: Writing the ABCs, sound spelling for writing, reading on level for 20 minutes a day, addition and subtraction problems.
Elementary daily practice: Writing in a journal, reading for 20 minutes a day, addition, subtraction, multiplication and division problems.
Middle school daily practice: Journal writing, algebra, geometry, researching skills, reading for 20 minutes a day.