Things to do now to get ready for back to school in September

I have always kind of hated seeing ‘back to school’ displays all over the place at the very start of the summer.

It’s always made me a bit sad, as if companies can’t let us just relax and enjoy the break for a bit before reminding us that everyone has to actually go back to school in September.

Yet here I am, about to write a post all about getting ready to go back to school.  In July.  When the school holidays have barely begun.

But please don’t hate me!

This is all in the name of feeling organised, and on top of things.  So when September does roll around, probably more quickly than we would like, we’re not caught up in a mad, last-minute panic to try and get everything sorted.

If you’d rather not think about it all for a while that’s fine.  I won’t be offended if you leave!  But if you would like to feel a bit more organised then here is my little list of things to do now to make ‘back to school’ a bit easier in September.

Plan what skills you’ll teach over the summer

Are there any particular skills you would like your child to learn before they move into the next year at school?

Maybe you would like them to be able to tell the time, or tie their own shoelaces.  Maybe you think it’s important for them to be able to be patient, or to take turns nicely.  It might be that you would like your little one to be able to count to ten, or write their own name before they start full time school.

Whatever it is you would like them to be able to do by September, put a plan together now for how you’re going to go about teaching them over the summer holidays.

Think about how you’ll label everything

You’ll need to label pretty much everything your child wears or takes to school with their name, so it can be returned to them if (when!) they lose it.

Planning ahead and thinking about how you’re going to label everything will save a last minute panic the week before school starts.  There are a few options when it comes to labelling your child’s clothes (and bags, and shoes, and coats).  Some people go the really simple route and just write their child’s name on things with a sharpie.  Others prefer the more traditional option of buying labels printed with their child’s name that they then sew onto everything.

I personally don’t have the time or inclination to get the sewing box out for that, so for the last few years I’ve been buying stickers with Rhys and Nerys’ names on.  There are several companies that make these but I’ve found Stickerscape labels to be really great.

If you decide to go down the label route rather than the marker pen one, get ahead and order those labels now rather than waiting till the end of the holidays.

Start saving

Parents of school-age children know that there is always something going on at school that you will need some loose change for.

Whether it’s money for snacks, school trips or charity fundraising events, you’ll often find yourself scrabbling about for a few pound coins on a fairly regular basis.

What I plan to do to try and make things a bit easier is to start putting my spare change aside throughout the summer.  I have a jar where odd pound coins and fifty pence pieces can be stashed, ready for dishing out when needed when the new school year starts.

Buy the essential items of clothing:

This is a bit of a tricky one because you never know if your child is going to have a growth spurt and shoot up a few inches in the summer holidays.

But I am planning on picking up a few bits of school uniform now so I’m not rushing round trying to sort it on the last week of the holidays.

Here’s what I’m planning on getting:

For Rhys

• Grey school trousers
• White polo shirts
• School sweatshirt/hoody

For Nerys

• School dress (for the start of term when it will probably still be warm)
• White polo shirts
• Cardigan or school sweatshirt
• Grey skirt/pinafore dress

For both

• School socks
• Smart shoes
• Trainers or plimsolls for PE
• Wellies
• Raincoat

Plan when/how you’ll fit in any summer homework 

Chances are you’ll have some homework to be working on over the summer break.  Take some time now to look over it, see what exactly needs to be done and make a plan for how and when it will be done.

No one wants to be rushing around trying to find enough cardboard to make a model house in the few days before school starts again!

Check if school bags will last another year

When everything comes home on the last day of term, have a look over it all and see if anything is in good enough condition to last another year.

I’m guessing that most things from this school year will have been bashed about so much that they will need to be replaced for the new year.

So keep an eye out in any summer sales for:

• A bookbag or rucksack
• PE kit bag
• Lunchbox
• Tupperware pots for snacks

Organise paperwork and digital details

Gather together any important bits of paperwork that have come home from school and put them all together in a file.

Then write down any and all passwords, log-ins etc that you have for any online programmes your child uses, and add that to your file.  Nice and organised!

There you have it, several things you can be doing now to make life a bit easier for the back to school period in September.

You sort of hate me a little now don’t you?

Sorry about that, but I bet you’ll appreciate it when you’re not rushing round like a mad thing in 6 weeks time!