Back to School Jitters…at all ages
By: Debbie Ellick
Back to school is a wonderful season for our children as we watch and help them learn and acquire knowledge to develop into wiser individuals. This time of year also brings much excitement and a bit of nervousness for both parents and children.
I remember when one of my three sons, Will, started middle school. He asked, “Mom, what if the students in my new school don’t like me?”
Kids worry about being accepted. They want their teachers and peers to laugh with them and not at them. They want the community to embrace them for their individuality and accept their style.
Like most parents, when my son asked me his million-dollar question, my heart sank and I wanted to say, “Of course your classmates will like you. You are nice, smart, kind, handsome, and respectful”. I took a deep breath and instead said, “William, starting junior high school is the beginning of your school career just like Mommy and Daddy have work careers. You will make friends with students in the other classrooms and in your own classroom. It is important for you to accept your new classmates and their different personalities. It is ok if your friends don’t look like you. They may be wearing different styled clothing or have different color hair, but if you accept them, your community of friends will be wider and you will be a wiser person for it. We learn from different individuals who come into our lives.” I reminded him that his mom and dad have different types of friends in their lives. Our peers are from different countries and have different cultures and beliefs. Their personalities help us have richer lives and more interesting experiences. You may not be everyone’s best friend, but if you respect them and give them a chance, they too will respect you.
As an educator, I am always thinking of how to best prepare my own sons as well as my young students to guide them through the next steps in life. It is so critical from early on in their development to create fun and educational games/activities to give them a sense of confidence. Here are a few suggestions for “Back to School” ideas for your young babies this season. These activities were helpful when I was a younger mom to nourish my children’s minds and curiosity.
Play for Infants
We don’t usually think of infants and dramatic play, but the foundations of language in dramatic play begin in infancy. Peek-a-boo games between the parent/teacher and child are quite common, and children delight in the sudden appearance and disappearance of familiar faces. You can, however, introduce novelty to this familiar routine by having brightly colored stuffed animals disappear and reappear for infants. Accompany the animals with animal sounds and change the position where the animal disappears and reappears to encourage head turning, visual tracking, and visual discrimination. Add a repeated refrain to the story and you’ve got a great dramatic-play event for infants. Encourage them to reach and touch, turn and look, and kick and squeal as they participate in the story.
Dress-up for Toddlers
Toddlers are just beginning a headlong charge into the wonderful world of make-believe. Almost any event or item becomes the impetus for a new or renewed burst of dramatic play. Encouraging “dressed-up toddlers” to hop like bunnies, or crawl like alligators gets them involved in creative expression. Creative play encourages early literacy and language through pretend play and story reading. Remember to ask your child open ended questions to keep them thinking.
Visuals for toddlers (Up to eight years old)
Visuals such as photo books, calendars, clocks and schedules give the child a sense of time and what is expected especially in pre-school. Photo cards or social stories allow your child to see simple words and photos. This prepares your child to understand sequencing, especially with time and schedules. Visuals help as an early reading tool and eventually helps with organizational skills. Children love to look at chore calendars, vacation plans and weekend excursions at Grandma and Grandpas.
The “Back-to-School” jitters don’t ever go away. Our desire to help our kids tackle the minor and more complex challenges through the years grows stonger as they get older. Children mature and with that, new transitions remain exciting and stressful. Now Will asks, “Am I going to find the perfect job?” Michaels questions “How will I figure out my major?” And Bradley asks, “I wonder where I will go to college?” And so on….
Happy Back To School!
About the Author
Deborah Ellick graduated from Syracuse University with a B.S. degree in Child Development and earned her master’s degree from George Washington University. She studied Early Childhood Special Education with a focus on children: infants through eight years old. Deborah owns and operates Sugar Plums, an early childhood education center. She currently lives in Bethesda, Maryland with her husband and three sons.
To learn more about Sugar Plums visit www.sugarplumscenter.com
Brain Freeze is a series of stories by parents that celebrates the candid moments in which their children ask the most unexpected questions. The series is sponsored by Chloe’s Fruit, a brand of frozen treats made from only three ingredients: fruit, water, and a touch of organic cane sugar. Follow Brain Freeze for more stories, and sign up to receive coupons for Chloe’s Pops in your inbox.
