Egg carton School Bus

For back to school, have your child make a school bus made from an egg carton.  Simply have your child color or paint the carton yellow.  (A cardboard carton works best)  For the older child, have him/her look through magazines and have him/her cut out pictures of children and glue them on the inside of the carton so that the faces are seen through the holes of the carton.  For younger children, simply have them glue the children in place.  Cut circles from black construction paper (again, the older child can cut these) and glue for wheels.  Another idea for wheels- use bottle caps and paint them black.  Then write "school" on the carton, and your child has his/her very own school bus.

Sit for school

Here's another tip to prepare your kids for school.  Start having your kids sit at the table, or at a desk, to do table top tasks.  Summer is full of fun, sun and lots of gross motor activities.  School is full of sitting and completing fine motor activities. Your child needs to start practicing being able to sit and complete fine motor activities.  Have your child color, or write a story.  Play board games to practice taking turns. Have your child increase the time he/she is able to sit so that he/ she will be ready when school starts.

It's School Time!!!

It's that time of year again- back to school time!  While most parents are ready to send their little ones back to school, it's important to make sure the kids are ready, as well.  Aside from the hand writing, scissor skills, spelling, reading, etc., kids need to be physically ready for school.  Working in the school environment, we hear all the time about the importance of kids getting enough sleep.  A tired child is not as able to learn as easily as a well rested child.  Think of your productivity at the office when you didn't get enough sleep the night before- it is not up to par.  Same goes for a child in school.  We know the summer brings a relaxed schedule, with later bedtimes.  If your child has not yet started the school year, start now by having your child go to bed earlier each night until he/she is at school bedtime.  Practice getting up earlier, too, so your child is able to do so for school.  Remember, consistency is key.  Children love routines and their bodies flourish by having them. Get an alarm clock, many different, and inexpensive models found at stores like Target and Walmart, and Kohls.  Have your child work on waking up to the alarm clock.