Supporting Kids Through the Back to School Transition

September feels like a fresh start. The backpacks are packed, school is underway, activities are filling the calendar again, and families are settling back into routines that may look very different from the slower days of summer.

While August is often focused on preparing for school, September gives us an opportunity to pause and notice how the transition is actually going.

As the school year gets underway, you may begin noticing challenges that weren't as apparent during the slower pace of summer. Bedtime may become a struggle, mornings feel rushed, breakfast turns into a battle, your child comes home incredibly hungry, or homework becomes a source of frustration and avoidance.

These changes can sometimes show up as “behavior.” But before focusing on the behavior itself, it can be helpful to return to basics. 

Is your child getting enough sleep? Sleep has a tremendous impact on how children function. When children are overtired, we may see more irritability, difficulty concentrating, bigger emotional reactions, and less flexibility. A consistent bedtime routine and enough time for sleep can help children feel more regulated and ready to take on the day.

Is your child getting enough food and water? Once school starts, children often have much less access to food than they did during the summer. Add increased activity back into their day, and you may have a very hungry child getting into the car at pickup. Tired, hungry children rarely have their best afternoons. A simple snack and bottle of water waiting in the car can sometimes make a bigger difference than we realize.

Is your child getting enough time to reconnect with you? When school starts, it can feel like we're moving from one task to the next: pickup, homework, dinner, activities, bedtime. Children may need a moment to transition too. Instead of jumping directly into homework, consider creating 10 minutes to reconnect and regulate first. Have a snack together, talk about something unrelated to school, take a few deep breaths, or try a simple grounding activity. 

Children experience their environment through their senses, and helping them regulate their bodies can make transitions much smoother. If you're looking for simple ways to help you and your child navigate the back-to-school transition, check out this resource with easy grounding techniques for kids that you can incorporate into your day. 

The goal isn't to add another thing to an already-full schedule. It's to remember that when a child is hungry, thirsty, exhausted, overwhelmed, or craving connection, it's much harder for them to tackle the bigger things we're asking of them.

Sometimes, supporting your child simply means noticing what their behavior may be communicating and asking, What do they need right now?