Preparing kids for learning adventures

By Sun Advocate

As a new school year approaches, many parents ask themselves if they have adequately prepared their children for the learning adventures ahead. Meanwhile, families want to be able to enjoy the time they have left together before the kids hustle off to the classroom.
Here are some back-to-school survival tips from www.smarterkids.com that will enable you and your children to make a smooth transition to the new school year:
•Bedtime regime. Parenting experts agree consistency is a fundamental key in a child’s routine. Prepare them several weeks before the school year begins by establishing a set bedtime. Ten to 12 hours of sleep is a good guideline for a well-rested child.
•Time on your side technology. Take advantage of the ease and convenience of Internet shopping. With the case of technology, gearing up with school clothes and supplies is just a click away.
•Reading is rudimentary. Make it a family event by incorporating reading or story telling during evening meals. Preschoolers can present drawings or paintings; older children can incorporate poems or lyrics with their daily events. Many public libraries promote summer reading incentive programs.
•Physical activity. Get the blood pumping and encourage gross motor skill development and family time by taking early morning or evening walks, riding bikes or skating. Outdoor games can include baseball, basketball, football, soccer, tennis, street hockey, volleyball, golf, Frisbee or tetherball. Create your own obstacle course by including hoops, cones, ropes, buckets, and balls.
•Learning with language. Take the opportunity on road trips to practice letter recognition by playing alphabet license plate or billboard games.
•Motivating with math. Take advantage of such activities as gardening and getaways to graph, count, and measure. Routine outings such as grocery shopping abound with math opportunities. Allow younger children to count the number of fruits and vegetables put into the cart. Older children can offer their skills to calculate a running total of the items in the cart, teaching them the valuable skills of addition and finance.
•Sensory science. Provide stimulating science explorations with “magic bottles” made with recycled water or soda bottles and filled with corn syrup.
Allow children to add in shells, plastic beads or glitter, and food coloring or liquid watercolor for a special touch. Make magnificent bubbles with alternative objects such as fly swatters and coffee cans.