.
Feedback

Getting Your Family Ready for the Upcoming School Year

Schools in the Acalanes Union High School District, Orinda Union School District, and Moraga schools resume instruction on Wednesday, Aug. 22. School starts Aug. 21 for Lafayette School District kids. Share your back-to-school tips!

Lamorinda schools resume the process of education later this month as local kids stream back through the portals of learning, shake off summer and get back into a classroom frame of mind. Along with lots of smiles and adventures, summer also brought about later bed times and, sometimes, a loss of routine.

Here are a few tips for getting back-to-school ready:

1. Reinstitute Bed Time: It's time to get your kids on a regular sleep schedule. Taking into consideration their wake-up time, make sure your kids get at least a good eight hours of sleep.

2. Set Appointments: Be sure to have all physicals, shots and records up to date. Doctor's offices are busy this time of year, so give yourself plenty of time. Also make sure your seventh grader has his/her whooping cough vaccine (for the 2012-13 school year and beyond, all seventh graders are required to have proof of whooping cough shots for the new school year).

3. Get a Calendar: Pick up a school calendar that marks important dates. The start of a school year brings important meetings, days off, sporting events and other activities, so always remember to jot it down!

4. Avoid Over-Shopping: No need to go crazy with back to school shopping. Check to see if you already have classroom staples before going out to buy more. When it comes to clothing, look for hand-me-downs and anything that still fits from last year. 

5. Turn Off the TV: During the summer, there's usually a more relaxed attitude when it comes to watching TV. However, now is the time to prepare your kids for a homework frame of mind. A great way to get them into the new routine is to have them read a book, do a puzzle or anything that requires creativity and imagination.

Do you have any back-to-school tips? Share them in the comments section below.

Newsletter & Alerts

Get the best stories each day and important breaking news

Subscribe

Not from Lamorinda Patch? Find your Local Patch »

X August 7, 2012 at 03:51 pm
1. Hope that your child doesn't become a Match Game '78 question. As a parent of two kids entering kindergarten, I'm especially mindful of this.
Dumb Dora is really dumb. (How dumb is she?) She's been in kindergarten so long, she's the only girl in class with _________________. http://youtu.be/XXPRtEFjZaA
d August 8, 2012 at 12:08 pm
Moraga schools start on the 22nd as well ... don't show up late on the 24th : http://lpes-msd-ca.schoolloop.com/
Note Article
Just a short thought to get the word out quickly about anything in your neighborhood.
Share something with your neighbors. Write a new post... What's up? Make an announcement, speak your mind, or sell something
Contra Costa Veterinary Hospital June 7, 2013 at 09:06 am
Woohoo!!! Congratulations to all the adopted pets, families with new pets and the rescues for comingRead More together for such a great cause :)
Laura June 7, 2013 at 10:49 am
Fantastic. I watched a gorgeous orange tabby get selected by a couple when I was buying cat food.Read More Made my day. Way to go CC4C and Pet Food Express.
greg w June 6, 2013 at 04:01 pm
Two of them - one high, one low...guessing burglars or mountain lion
eruc June 6, 2013 at 05:32 pm
KCBS reports missing 23 year old missing man. Vague report but citizens are asked to call police ifRead More seen.
eruc June 6, 2013 at 05:35 pm
More about this...Read More http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_23406312/lafayette-police-searching-missing-at-risk-adult
elizabeth June 6, 2013 at 11:44 am
Hopefully, her owner has found her!She was a BEAUTY!
Lana Henderson June 7, 2013 at 12:36 am
On several occasions, I have seen 5-6 chickens pecking their way down their steep driveway on theRead More east side of Saint Mary's Road, very close to the Cattle Chute. I had not read this story earlier. On 6/3 or 6/4, I saw a black hen, alone, out in the road right at the point of the Moraga Commons. It was pecking the pavement on Moraga Road, as cars turning north from Saint Mary's Road were avoiding it. I hope the chicken crossed the road to the trail on the other side. Better yet, I hope it turned around and followed that trail right back to the Cattle Chute and home.