Parenting Strategies: Five Ways to Start the School Year Mindfully
Starting the school year can be stressful for kids, teens and their parents. Here's a quick checklist to help you mindfully cope with all these new changes and transitions.
1.) Set the tone for each day.
Each morning, check in with your child and ask things like:
What's one thing you're looking forward to today?
What will make this day a good day?
Who are you excited to see today?
Are there any fun activities I'm doing after school that I'm looking forward to?
As parents, you should also set the tone for your day by asking yourself:
What am I looking forward to today?
Any good lunch plans or catching up with co-workers?
What item am I excited to cross off my "to-do" list?
2.) Build a solid routine.
After summer it's hard to get back into a routine, but it's SO important to try to set expectations and stick with them. Write out a daily or weekly schedule that includes wake-up times, bedtimes, after-school activities, dinner, and showers. Keep the schedule visible for the whole family and have the kids add to it when needed.
Stress feeds off of the "unknown" so making more things "known" will automatically help ease the stress.
3.) Focus on daily self-care.
Make sure you and your children are going to sleep early enough, eating healthy fruits and veggies, and getting some exercise in every day. Even a 30-minute walk with your kids or solo will feel great!
4.) Limit new-ness.
This time of year is filled with so many new things: new teachers, new after-school activities, new friends in your child’s classes, and new group chats of the parents in those classes. It can make your head spin!
At home, try to do things that you're used to: Cook a go-to meal, re-watch a show you enjoy, read a beloved book, or play your family's favorite game. Do tried-and-true things to relax and remind yourself, “Oh yeah, it's not ALL new. I can always do ____ when things feel new or hard.”
5.) Check in every evening with your child and yourself.
Follow up with your kids and ask them if they did the thing they said they were looking forward to. Ask yourself if you accomplished any goals.
Remind yourself it was a good day overall, even if there were stressful moments. If you were to re-watch your whole day, it’s likely the hard moments were only a few minutes long — maybe 5-10 mins max out of the 14+ hour day! So try not to end the day saying things like “Oh, it was such a bad day.” Reframe your day to recognize the reality that it was a good 14+ hour day with 5 minutes of high stress
Want More Mindful Parenting Strategies?
Parenting Therapy can help you learn strategies to communicate with and support your child — becoming a better, more present parent. Insight Psychology Group offers online parenting therapy in Florida and New York.
learn more MINDFUL PARENTING STRATEGIES
