Arababa
ARABBABBA'S TOP 5 TIPS FOR
GETTING YOUR CHILDREN READY
FOR BACK TO SCHOOL
T
he summer is on it’s way
out of the door in the UAE
and everyone is prepping
themselves to return back
to school as teachers, students and
parents.
The school run traffic, the nightly
homework, the afterschool activities
– oh and don’t forget making those
healthy lunches!
While we as parents are psyching
ourselves up to get back into the
routine, I wanted to provide you
with a few things to help you ease
into that schedule alongside your
kids.
1) Start talking
Kids know they are going back to
school. Some are going to a new
school, a new grade or even just
starting school for the first time.
There is an element of fear and
excitement of the unknown.
Talk to them about how they feel for
this new year of adventure. Do they
have any concerns? What are they
most excited about? Do they know
their teacher for the new year?
2) Involve them
Start looking at what kind of things
they want for their lunch and develop
a menu together. Head in together
and early, to get their uniforms and
get their buy-in (sometimes we end
up buying those jerseys for winter and
they never use them). Pickup those
new school shoes together and their
new trainers. Sit with them and get
everything labeled and hung up and
ironed nicely in their closet (I remember
loving seeing my uniform hanging up
all new and crisp).
3) Last Minute Learning
Hopefully you haven’t dumped home
learning the entire summer and have
kept them going on new projects,
programs and ofcourse, reading! This
is now a great time to step it up and
start doing that homework and last
minute learning every day, at the same
time you plan when they are back to
school. It’s a great opportunity to
easily transition into that schedule.
4) Looking Good
Get those haircuts going and dentist
visits done. It’s a great time to walk
into school on that first day feeling
fresh and looking great!
5) Extra Fun
Make a point to do something as a
family to end the summer. It could be
staying at a hotel for a night, heading
to the water packs, LegoLand or any
of the other awesome activities that
are around us in the UAE. Make this a
great family adventure together.
The best part of ending the summer
is that new adventures await our kids.
Be kind to yourself as well and look
forward to a well needed break (if you
are a stay at home mum or dad) or just
happy that your child is back into the
educational swing of things.
Send them off, feeling and being the
best that they can be. Offering them
positive words, encouragement, love
and communication, can have them
reaching for the stars. What a great
way to start a new year!
Good luck everyone! I would love to
hear from you on your suggestions
that you are doing to ease back into
school.
Mostafa (ArabBaba) is a teacher by profession. He has been an Arab Stay-At-
Home-Baba (Dad) to his two daughters. He is also a blogger, who is on a mission
to prove that Parental Engagement is vital to the process of children’s education.
For more on ArabBaba, visit www.ArabBaba.org.