All of my Facebook friends are posting back to school pictures of their kids. Since my kids are grown, here’s a shot of my grandson on his first day of preschool. His mother was a handful when school started. Mostly because she had definite opinions on what she wanted to wear and the mornings became battlegrounds over her clothes choices. It wasn’t until a very wise woman told me, “Let her pick her clothes out at night and lay them out for the next day.” Bingo. No more battles in the morning over clothing.

Getting back into the routine for school can be hard after summer vacation. There are lunches to pack, carpools to organize, teacher/parent conferences to attend and after school activities. The only way to remain sane and navigate all the stress is to get back into a routine utilizing these time-tested strategies:

Get organized

You are going to be inundated with papers and notices. You’re going to have emails from teachers and school staff. You’re going to have to keep track of dates and deadlines. If you have a college-bound teen, you’re going to get college brochures and letters in the mail.

Part of getting organized is something our mothers used to tell us: a place for everything and everything in its place. Establish a landing zone and display a large wall calendar that will help you stay on top of the dates, deadlines, and after school activities.

Watch this short video for 8 steps for staying organized.

Prepare in advance

As I mentioned earlier, we made it a practice to prepare for the next day. Make sure all homework is done, all permission slips are signed, all clothes are chosen, and all lunches are ready to go. Preparing in advance alleviates morning chaos and assures that your student is sent to school with everything they need for the day.

Stick to the schedule

Part of establishing a routine is sticking to the schedule. Homework should be done at the same time every afternoon or evening. Baths and normal bedtime routine should stay fairly similar from night to night. Kids react positively to routines. Chaos in the home transfers to chaos at school

Ready Wendy’s post: 3 Sure-fire Words to Adjust to New Routines

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Wednesday’s child may be full of woe but Wednesday’s Parent can substitute action for anxiety. Each Wednesday Wendy and I will provide parent tips to get and keep your student on the college track. It’s never too late or too early to start!

The bonus is on the fourth Wednesday of each month when Wendy and I will host Twitter chat #CampusChat at 9pm ET/6pm PT. We will feature an expert on a topic of interest for parents of the college-bound.

Wednesday’s Parent will give twice the info and double the blog posts on critical parenting issues by clicking on the link at the end of the article from parentingforcollege to pocsmom.com and vice versa.