Back to Basics with Back to School Goals

 By Alyssa Craig

Integrated Learning Strategies (ILS) is a learning and academic center. As a reminder, ILS is not a health care provider and none of our materials or services provide a diagnosis or treatment of a specific condition or learning challenge you may see in your child or student. If you seek a diagnosis or treatment for your child or student, please contact a trained professional who can provide an evaluation of the child.

The summer has flown by and the beginning of the school year is right around the corner. This is a great time to get your family together and make some back to school goals. Your goals can cover everything from healthy eating, to getting homework done, to setting financial goals individually and as a family. The main overall goals are to keep the family improving and to make sure the important things are not lost in the whirlwind of the school year.

 

Here are some suggestions for goals to get you started on the right foot. Remember to adjust them to fit your family’s individual needs:

Family Dinners

Make a plan to have dinner together as a family every night during the workweek or at least a certain number of days per week. This will help the family to remain close and stay updated on each others’ lives as work, practices, and other activities start to take over.

Homework Rules

Establish homework rules so expectations are set in place before anything is even assigned. An example may be that all homework needs to be completed before play, or perhaps you can designate a certain area in the house for studying and homework.

Bedtimes

Summertime can do a number on regular bedtimes, so take the time to set up bedtimes for each family member. Bedtime may be relative to age and responsibilities, or perhaps one bedtime is appropriate for all the children.

Earning Money

Determine how each family member will earn their own money, whether it be through allowance, chores, or jobs for older children. Sit down with each child and determine what they would like to have achieved financially by the end of the school year.

Emergency Fund

One important goal is to set up an emergency fund if you do not already have one in place. Such a fund will help maintain normalcy should your family experience an unexpected financial burden. This is mainly a conversation for the adults, but back to school is a great time to discuss a plan as it will benefit the entire family. Not sure how to make it happen? Check out these tips.

Family Time

The school year can get hectic as schedules fill up quickly. Reserve either a day during the week or on the weekends for “family time” when every member of the family can be home together.

Healthy Dinners

Make cooking healthy dinners a priority, along with helping each family member to improve their cooking skills. Create a cooking rotation so everyone has an opportunity to learn how to cook healthy dinners. You might even make it a goal to try a new recipe at least once a week.

Healthy Lunches

Continue your healthy eating goals by making it a point to pack healthy lunches before bed so they are ready for the next day. Achieving this goal will make for a less hectic morning routine.

Premade After School Snacks

Buy bulk bags of healthy snacks (baby carrots, celery sticks, pretzels, etc.) and put them in snack size ziploc bags for easy after school snacking access.

Chores

In order to keep up chores during the school year, determine if they will be completed as little ones throughout the week or all on Saturday morning. It should be a goal to have them completed before other activities take place.

Backpack Dump

Children are notorious for receiving important papers and never getting them to their parents. Go through everything in your child’s backpack at least once a week. There are bound to be reminders or papers that need signing that your kid isn’t showing you.

Family Calendar

As a family, sit down and create a calendar where everyone can keep the rest of family updated with important dates and deadlines. Be sure to add big project due dates, recitals, performances, practices, and anything else others may need to be aware of.

The new school year provides a late year “fresh start”. Take advantage of this time and build some great goals together as a family that will help your family members to stay close, to achieve their own personal goals, and to help the family improve as a whole.

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Integrated Learning Strategies is a Utah-based center dedicated to helping mainstream children and children with learning challenges achieve academic success. Our services provide kids with non-traditional tutoring programs within the Davis County, Kaysville, Layton, Syracuse, Farmington, and Centerville areas. Areas to find Integrated Learning Strategies include: Reading tutors in Kaysville, Math tutors in Kaysville, Common Core Tutors in Kaysville, Tutors in Utah, Utah Tutoring Programs