Clocks: the scourge of parents!
September has crept up on stealthily this year and before you can say ‘Bonfire Night’ it will be Christmas.
Children may complain about the big return to school but secretly they are glad to see their friends and settle into a new classroom.
The Autumn term is prime learning time for young people; their minds are fresh after a long summer of school-free sunshine, and ready to start soaking up all the knowledge that will see them hitting their academic targets at the end of the year.
Now is the time to instill a good learning routine, if your child doesn’t already have one. A productive school day begins the night before with a restful night of sleep, so firm bedtimes are a must. In the morning, everything your child needs (uniform, schoolbag, pe kit, lunch) should be ready – how much responsibility you give them for this depends on their age and level of maturity, but do check it is all there the night before. Being organised in the morning cuts out that hideous panic as you all rush around searching for lost shoes or school books.
Breakfast is hugely important: your child should not, not, NOT be eating sugar in the morning. Eating sugar for breakfast will wreak havoc with your child’s concentration levels in school and set up a vicious cycle that demands regular sugar top-ups throughout the day. Read the ingredients on your child’s breakfast cereal: even cereals to which we normally add sugar often contain the brain-robbing substance in the first place.
A good breakfast will provide sustained energy and nutrients to build a healthy child. Try porridge and banana, wholegrain toast and peanut butter or a freshly made smoothie of various fruits with rice milk and maybe a handful of oats. If your child is resistant to eating breakfast you need to pull out all the stops to persuade them; watch out for our blog post on this later this week.
Walking is by far the best way to get to school as the exercise oxidises the brain and the sights and sounds you will experience on the way (a ladybird, a funny shaped cloud, a bin lorry) will engage your child’s brain and focus their mind, ready to learn. Sometimes this is not possible because of all our commitments, so if you’re driving, try to set off in plenty of time so that you can secure an elusive (and safe) parking space.
After school, the homework routine should always be the same: designate an area at home where your child can concentrate; allocate a time period; provide hydration in the form of water or fruit juice and decide whether your child will need a break before starting work.
Routines are habit-forming and it is a good idea to instill good study habits at a young age, so that by the time your child is preparing for GCSEs these are ingrained and come as second nature. Don’t think of these suggestions as rigid or restricting; it is up to you to design a steady routine that suits your family and tweak it as necessary.
