As winter break starts to come to an end, are you worried about what the transition back into school will look like? Are you worried about getting back into a routine? Are you worried about what school will be like and if remote learning will be started up again? While school districts are trying to keep students in person as much as possible, there have been conversations around when remote learning may need to be started again. Are you worried about sending your child back to school right now with the rising number of Covid cases? These are some factors that can make it harder to transition back into school with your children.
Having children return back to routines will be easier or harder based on how off of their routine they are. Some children need their routine more than others so while it may not be exactly the same, it will be closer to the normal routine. If your child is farther off their routine, then trying to ease them back into it earlier will make it easier. If you adjust it back gradually, it will make it easier for them to come back to their routine and start to follow it again. As with many things, communication is important with your children. Talk to your children about why it is important to start getting back to their schedule for school. If you wait until the last day or two, the first morning back to school may be more difficult as it will most likely be more difficult to wake them up on time for school. There may be several reasons why they are not on their typical routine such as holidays, parties, and other winter break events, but waiting until the last minute to try to put it back in will be difficult. If they are old enough to understand, then talk to them about how they want to have the school schedule put back in place and help them to understand the importance.
The idea of going back to remote learning is a difficult one for many people and many reasons. Schools have been trying to be able to stay open, but there are some schools that are not sure if they can remain open with the rising number of Covid cases. Remote learning posed problems for families for several reasons including, difficulty with work, daily logistics, child engagement, and social emotional concerns. If remote learning does start again, it is important to talk with your children about why it is happening and if it is known how in person learning would be able to start again. It is also important to talk to your children about the expectations of how the daily logistics would work and what socialization can look like. There are some families whose comfort level may have changed as more knowledge about Covid and vaccines have become more available. This could change some of what this experience looks like in terms of social emotional concerns as there may be more opportunity for social and peer interactions this time. With the concerns around work, at this time, more companies have moved to a hybrid or remote working option which may help with this. It is not true in all jobs, but this can be helpful for some.
Concerns around sending your child back is something that is more personal and needs to be thought of in terms of your own comfort level. Think about what is the best option for your family. This can be many factors that need to be considered such as the risk of exposure, daily logistics, social emotional needs of family members, and your child’s best learning method. While this is not an easy decision to make, it is one that each family needs to make for themselves. If your children are old enough, then talk to them about what they want and what is best for them. Make sure to let them know all of the factors that need to be considered so that they can help to make an informed decision.
As you are making these decisions, please feel free to reach out to me for more support around this. These are not the easiest decisions to make so feel free to reach out.
