INDIANA – Sweet summertime. Longed for all school year and mourned when classes started in early August. We all feel it, right? Parents, school personnel, and kids often dread the end of summer.
While some parents may long for school to resume—and for rowdy kids to be back in a routine—the end of those carefree summer days can evoke strong emotions. Educators and students often feel it too, as summer passes in a blink. This article shares more about what the “back-to-school blues” can look like and how to help yourself and your child get past them.
Parents experience everything from relief to frustration to worry. Some parents feel relieved that their child is heading back to school and getting back into a structured routine, but it may also feel bittersweet that their child is growing up, maturing, and moving forward in all areas of life. Some feel frustrated when their child struggles with adjusting to the school routine. Other parents may be worried because their child is having a difficult time with separation anxiety.
School personnel also experience a range of emotions. They can be eager to decorate their classrooms and reconnect with co-workers they haven’t seen all summer. They may be excited to meet new students and build relationships with them, or maybe anxious and worried about what the coming school year may bring. Teachers may wonder whether their classroom will be well-behaved or difficult to control.
For some students, the start of the school year may bring sadness. They may feel sad that summer is over, days are shorter, and pools are closing. They may feel sad because their extra time at home, whether it was spent with family, at summer camp, or just sleeping in, is coming to an end. Some may be anxious about meeting their new teacher and worried about who will be in their class. If they are moving to a new school, students may be concerned about the schedule and how to find their classroom. Older students could be experiencing anxiety over figuring out how to work their locker’s combination lock or getting from one class to another before the bell rings.
All of these feelings are entirely normal, so if you or your child experiences them, just know that it is okay! Validate yourself and your child. Reassure yourself and them that everything will be fine and everyone will feel better once the new routine is in place.
There are some things you can do to help with the adjustment back to school:
- Restart a bedtime routine a couple of weeks before school starts. This can also include waking them up at the time they would need to get up to get ready for school.
- Attend back-to-school night to help ease your child’s anxiety about finding their classroom and meeting their teacher and classmates. This is also an opportunity for older kids to practice unlocking their combination lock, and you can help them map out a route to get from one class to another.
- If your child does not want to get on the bus or out of the car and is experiencing separation anxiety, reassure them that you love them and that you will see them after school. (You could also write a note they can stick in their locker to remind them.)
- Help them focus on the positive aspects of their day by asking them what they like about school and what fun memories they made that day. Help them take deep breaths and give them some extra hugs if they need it.
Breanna Dudley-Wissel, MSW, LSW, is a Youth First Mental Health Professional at Princeton Community Intermediate School in Gibson County. Youth First, Inc., is a nonprofit dedicated to strengthening youth and families. Youth First provides over 100 highly trained mental health professionals (primarily master’s level social workers), prevention programs, parent engagement coordinators, and bilingual support personnel to 130 schools across 14 Indiana counties. Over 54,000 youth and families each year are served by Youth First’s school-based social work and community programs that promote mental health, prevent substance misuse, and maximize student success. To learn more about Youth First, visit youthfirstinc.org or call 812-421-8336.
