It’s important to remember is the massive upheaval and change that this pandemic has ushered in, both children and adults haven’t experienced anything like this in living memory, so when easing back into the school routine it’s important to take gradual and steady steps, we’re still not at a stage where it is business as normal and our approaches should reflect this. Here are 7 tips that mums might find useful.
1. Talk things out
A Lot has happened, give your child a safe place to express their thoughts and feelings and try not to make assumptions, it’s important that they understand that any feelings they have are not unique to them.
2. Ease back into the routine
It’s very likely that over the course of the pandemic that routines have become more relaxed. Your children have probably got used to going to bed and waking a lot later than they’re used to.
If you haven’t already, you should begin to reintroduce structure, bedtime is an important one as you want them to have energy and be alert for the day. Do this gradually and give them time to acclimatise.
In terms of school work, with so much time away, schools will also be easing them back into the routine, and covering basic concepts to reestablish confidence. There probably won’t be very much homework initially if at all. You can supplement this by gently reintroducing gradually homework time after school. It doesn’t need to be as extensive as pre-covid levels but even half an hour after school will be beneficial.
3. Reassure the child
Children may feel a bit anxious about returning to school because the virus is still present especially if they themselves or a family member has been affected by the virus, you can reassure them by helping them to understand all the safety measures that have been put in place to keep them safe and how things are getting better.
4. Don’t put pressure on yourself
There has been a lot of talk of the lost time that students have experienced so naturally you may be putting pressure on yourself to ensure that your child makes up for the lost time. There is no need for this, children all over the country and even all over the world are in exactly the same boat. The focus now should be mental and emotional well being of students there will be plenty of time to catch with academic work.
5. Plan ahead
As well as processing and discussing all that has happened over the past year, it’s very important for children to be excited about the future, take some time and identify things they look forward to, the reality is this pandemic won’t last forever and children need to understand this.
6. Seek help if needed
If your child is struggling, communicate this with the school, there may be some systems that they have in place that can help, alternatively you can also seek help from your local GP if your child is really struggling with their mental health.
7. Academic planning/Tuition
If you require further assistance with your child’s studying a private tutor could be useful, the extra support with their academic needs and progression alongside school and home could take some of the pressure off to allow you to concentrate on other areas during this time. You may not require a private tutor but may benefit from some advice and consultancy. If either of these sound like something you would benefit from please do feel free to get in touch with Sam Tutoring today!
Final Thoughts
Easing Children back into the school routine, is one that require time and care, although the studies of young people all over the world have been disrupted, I see no reason with a supportive environment and a well thought out strategy why children won’t go on to achieve the bright futures they were on course for before the pandemic.
Samuel Adu-Gyamfi is the CEO and founder of Sam Tutoring, a tutoring service and consultancy in London he founded a decade ago.
Sam Tutoring provides private one to one tuition along with group and online tuition for families in Central London and internationally, as well as tailor made services for schools.
Working with students from the ages of 7-18 we provide academic support and mentorship.
Email info@samtutoring.london, to book a consultation or visit www.samtutoring.london to see how we can help your child succeed. Read more tips by Sam tutoring here.
