Now that the holiday is nearly over and the new school year is about to begin, you need to prepare your little child(ren) especially the first timers psychologically. Understanding each child’s physical and emotional needs will help you respond and prepare them for upcoming transitions such as starting school in a new environment, or resuming school after the holiday.

Here are some tips to emotionally and mentally prepare your child for school resumption:

• Discuss cheerfully with your child about starting school and listen to his/her response to the topic. Do they react eagerly, or with confusion and anxiety? Depending on their reaction, be open to deal with it with affirmation and care.

• Prepare your child to get into the routine of going to bed early and waking up early. This makes it easier for him/her to adapt upon resumption.

• Invite your child to go shopping for school supplies, new clothes, new lunch box or back pack. Involving them creates excitement about the start of school.

• As your child moves from nursery to primary or from primary to secondary, it is normal to experience anxiety. Be on ground to speak with your child about any worries he/she may have and try to find possible solutions to them.

• Drop off your child on the first day of school. If it’s a new school, decrease anxiety for your child by touring it with him/her, locate classrooms, see new faces and meet the new teacher.

• When children return from school, it is homework and family moment. Ensure this time is utilized properly, by creating specific homework area in the home. Assemble the homework station with necessary supplies like notebooks, pencils, erasers and crayons. Make sure the area is bright and the chair(s) as comfortable as possible.

• Unless your child went for summer lessons during the holiday, you want to wake their brains up in preparation for the new term. Make brain training a fun prospect by injecting interesting activities such as: book reading, card games and jigsaw puzzles.

If your child’s school has provision for extra-curricular activities, now is the time to discuss his/her preference and why. Knowing and concluding beforehand helps you ensure that your child is occupied with an activity that they enjoy after school work and that will impact positively on them.

PS: When you have done all of these, don’t forget to use tools like a children’s education calculator to determine how much you will need for your child’s education this term. Then plan with that in mind.