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Preparations for the upcoming school year are a little different than in years past. After a year of online and distance learning, parents will need to help their kids into a fresh routine and new place to make school much easier once it starts.
--Kids and teens need 9-10 hours of sleep a night to get enough melatonin in their systems. That regulates their hormones, giving them energy — and it only resets with sleep. That means getting your kids into bed well before 10 p.m.
--Brain researcher Dr. Patrick Porter suggests that parents, in the weeks before school begins, start their kids’ mornings with stimulating activities, like exercise or reading a book, before allowing them any screen time.
--Ease the tension of going back to in-person learning by setting expectations with your kids. Talk with them — weeks in advance — about what school will look like this year. Keep things positive and avoid ambiguity.
--Parents should be ready for a new emergence of separation anxiety in an effort to avoid this coming school year.
--Be aware of an increase in emotions or irritability, like excessive crying, during the back-to-school period. Expect it but nip it in the bud.
--And definitely seek out help for your kids when they need it.
(KOIN)