Preparing for a new school year can add new layers of anxiety. How can a family motivate their students about school with so many complex social issues coming at us?
Talk Up Learning
Learning is so important. Sadly, too many struggled over the last year. It appears this year will not be as restrictive. Talk up learning. You know your student better than anyone else does. What are his or her strengths? If the majority of learning centers around those subjects, a positive school experience is bound to follow. With the plusses there are also minuses. No one likes every subject taught. I didn’t care for Geometry. Acknowledge the dislike, but figure out how to overcome. In high school, my oldest daughter struggled with chemistry class. A classmate, who was also a neighbor, was a whiz kid at chemistry. He helped her make sense of the class better than the teacher did. She passed with a very good grade. Ask your child if one of their classmates is good in the subject they are struggling with. Then encourage spending time together. Technology allows us to access online helps in ways that bring the expertise needed.
As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. Proverbs 27:17NLT
Look for Opportunities
Preparing for a new school year also means looking for opportunities to enhance learning. If your child enjoys health and nutrition classes, watch cooking shows together. Experiment with new recipes and methods of cooking. Learn how to read labels together. Have the student create a grocery shopping list. Talk openly about nutrition. If possible, visit a local farm for U-pick produce and fruit. There’s something exciting about harvest season and the gathering of one’s own food. Groceries don’t magically arrive in the market for purchasing.
Perhaps your student is more interested in mechanics. Do you have a friend who is a mechanic? Ask them to share some how-to tips. Or look for opportunities for hands-on experience. Even sweeping up at the auto shop brings familiarity with the day-to-day operations of a career in this field. Offer to volunteer if no part-time work is available. A lot of career paths have begun with a willingness to give time without pay.
The goal is to prepare for a new school year with an air of excitement. Whether playing sports or an instrument in the band, the school experience is heightened by participating in extra curricular activities. Having something enjoyable to do with fellow classmates adds joy to school days. If money is tight, and for many it is, ask grandparents or aunts and uncles to consider helping with the costs. This could be one of the best gifts they can give.
*Photo by Marilia Castelli on Unsplash
