Well organized in everyday school life

Who starts the school day well organized, can concentrate better on school. At first, parents of course help, but if children learn from the first school year to organize their school supplies sensibly, it will soon become a habit.

Packing the school backpack

Schoolchildren need a well-fitting school backpack. This is important to prevent back problems. An ergonomic school backpack has padded straps. This distributes the weight of the bag evenly across the children's backs.

The trick when packing the school backpack is that kids take as little as possible each day, but everything they need for the school day. That sounds simple, but especially at the beginning it is not so easy for children to judge what they need on a school day and what they don't.

Therefore the school bag generally be repacked every evening, so your child doesn't carry too much weight to school. At the beginning of the school time you can check together with the schoolchildren whether everything that is needed is in the backpack. Or if there are perhaps items that don't necessarily need to come along. This relieves the child's back and creates order in the backpack!

Getting & organizing school supplies

Drawing pad, math workbook, pencil case and gym bag – for each subject children need different items. In some primary schools, lists of required school supplies are issued at the beginning of the school year. Other parents use school supply lists from the internet and supplement them as needed. The least stressful is getting the school supplies, when you plan enough time and, if possible, shop at a specialty store, where you can get everything at once. Find out more about organizing school supplies here.

How can school supplies be organized better? The fight about tidying up is a daily occurrence in many families and doesn't stop at school supplies. If empty lunch boxes, loose bits of paper or tattered notebooks are flying around in the school bag and the child's desk is overflowing with art materials and books, learning doesn't necessarily get any easier. Practice with your child from the very beginning, to keep school supplies organized. Practical children's furniture or an organization system can help. Here you'll find practical tips to to organize school supplies better.

Supporting children in learning

Supporting children optimally – a perennial topic. But even without excessive ambition, there are some stumbling blocks in everyday school life. How can you support your child to avoid learning frustration? Here are a few tips:

• Supporting children when learning to read: The real foundations for learning to read are laid in the toddler and kindergarten years: Read to your children often, talk and sing with them. They learn to recognize different sounds and syllables. This automatically trains their language comprehension. Later it's about recognizing letters. For example, by deciphering street signs together or writing their own name. More about learning to read with children.

• Learning to write and practicing with children: It starts with the ABC, which children, for example, learn with magnetic letters, play, songs or rhymes. When they know the alphabet well, they can trace the first letters or form them with objects. This is a playful introduction to the world of writing that many children enjoy. If that works well, pre-writing exercises, to practice writing. Later you can give your assign your children small writing tasks – from the first sentences to their own diary, things can sometimes progress quite quickly.

• Math in everyday life with children: Like language, mathematics surrounds us constantly in everyday life. To practice counting with your kids, you can occasionally give them small counting and later arithmetic problems. How many flowers do you see in the raised bed? How many steps is it up the stairs to the children's room?

• problem-solving skills are required in all subjects at school. You can also practice these with your children. For example with learning and support games, in which they solve various puzzles, puzzles or small everyday tasks that you set them spontaneously: How can wooden blocks be used to build a stable tower? What can the princess in the fairy tale do to save her prince?

Help with homework

Should I help my child with their homework? Homework is a contentious issue in many families. The main disagreements are about when homework is done and, above all, how. Sometimes children are reluctant to accept parental help with homework and react defiantly. Other parents get so involved with homework that there is hardly any learning effect left for the child.We tell you when it makes sense to help your child with their homework.

Homework supervision for children

When the homework repeatedly leads to conflicts or if there is no time in daily life to do homework together, then a homework supervision can help. Here, not only is it ensured that the students complete all pending tasks on time and in full, ideally the children also learn structured working methods and deepen their knowledge. Here you can find out more about homework supervision.

When is tutoring useful?

Tutoring seems to be part of everyday school life today: A quarter of all schoolchildren regularly or occasionally receive tutoring take advantage of it. There is not always a real need, because for some parents tutoring is simply a way to further improve their children's grades. When tutoring is useful and what parents should consider when choosing the type of tutoring, you can read here.

What to do about learning difficulties?

Some children find learning to read difficult, others fall behind in maths compared to the rest of the class, others again have fundamental difficulties concentrating on lessons. Learning difficulties are relatively common and yet very individual. The top priority is to not to put yourselves under pressure, but to look for solutions together with the teachers. Further information on dealing with learning difficulties are available here.

How can I protect my child on the way to school?

The trip to kindergarten is usually still made with mom or dad, but after starting school, many children go to school alone for the first time. That's a good thing, because it promotes independence and self-confidence. Nevertheless, you should not send your child completely unprepared on the way to school. We recommend this preparation:

• Depending on whether they go to school on foot, by bike or by bus, you can practice the route together.

• Also explain to your child the most important rules for the route to school.

• Especially in the winter months, when children are more often out in the dark, they need reflective clothing and accessories. This increases their visibility on the way to school. Read more tips for a safe route to school in the dark here.

• It is also advisable, to memorize emergency numbers with your children, in case something happens on the way to school or they get into an emergency situation.

Finally holidays – well-deserved break or time to catch up?

Not only schoolchildren eagerly await the holidays. Many parents also look forward to the break from homework, parent letters and early mornings. The holiday period is above all a time of rest and relaxation. For travelling and family time. Because children also need a break from the school routine and want to spend time with the family and relax and unwind. This is important for their mental health. During the break they can recharge their batteries, broaden their horizons on family trips and prepare for the coming school year.

Depending on the school grades, some parents also ask during the holidays: Is learning during the school holidays necessary? Tutoring or learning courses during the holidays can quickly spoil the mood and put children under unnecessary pressure. On the other hand, in daily life there is often little time to effectively make up for a learning deficit. In any case, you should involve your child in the decision for or against holiday learning. Perhaps your child might even want to review some material themselves, in order to start the next school year without difficulty. However, make sure that your children still have enough time for leisure and relaxation during the holidays if they need to learn.

What to do about boredom during the holidays?

Some children look forward to the holidays for weeks, and when the time finally comes, they sit at home on some days and don't know what to do with themselves.Of course boredom is quite normal from time to time and can even stimulate the imagination. But if your child has absolutely nothing to do, misses their classmates, and complains

• , we have a few tips on what can be done to combat boredom during the holidays: Look around to see if there are in your area holiday activities for your children exist. Together with other children, explore nature, do crafts, or play

• . That is really fun! In many places there are numerous such offerings. Check the website or the social media channels of your municipality for their offerings.Plan an outing: You can go camping with your children, explore a nearby park or forest, or attend cultural events

• . During the holidays, museums or theaters offer many child-friendly events that are a lot of fun. You can also start a start a small craft project, that fits the season. Window pictures with bees in summer, pumpkins in autumn. Suitable craft materials

• with instructions can be found in our shop. Hold a game night with your children

: The anticipation for a big family game night is high. Choose tricky games that your children don't know yet and that will excite them! How about, for example,

Making the start of school easierEvery year parents ask themselves: How do I make the start of school easier? Not only the first day at school is a big deal for children, also the start of every new school year brings change. Some children can hardly wait to move up to the next grade, others are downright afraid of the start of school

• and the changes that come with it. The good news: With the right preparation and a few simple tips, parents can make the start of school easier: Look back together at the past school year:

• For some children it can be reassuring to talk about the nice things from the past school year. At the end of the holidays they remember their classmates, small and large successes. That immediately gives a good feeling.Talk about plans for the new school year: But looking ahead to the coming weeks and months also helps to deal with fears or uncertainties. Talk openly with your children about the upcoming changes and direct their attention to the positive aspects

• . A new subject, maybe a foreign language is added? Great, then they'll be well prepared for the trip on next summer's vacation!Re-establish the school routine: During the holidays, children usually get up at different times, and sometimes meal times shift as well. To slowly prepare them for school again, it is advisable to start the familiar routines again in the week before school starts as much as possible. This makes the transition from holiday time to school time easier

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Care during the school dayThe number of families in which both parents are employed is steadily increasing. This requires more and different care concepts for schoolchildren. This can, for example, be a babysitter. But also extracurricular programs or leisure activities from clubs or the municipality can be an answer to the question of after-school care. It is important that you talk with your children about how they would most like to spend their time after school

and find a good solution for everyone.More and more schools also offer all-day care. But how do you as parents know whether an all-day school is right for your child is it? Decisive, in addition to the school type, is above all the concept of the school and how committed it is supported by teachers, parents and children. Properly implemented an all-day school offers many advantages

. In the magazine we have compiled useful information and tips about school and care for you.

Latchkey childAll-day care makes sense when the parents work long hours or when children want to use the special support and leisure offerings of all-day schools. Some children also look after themselves for a few hours after school until the parents are at home. Depending on the age and maturity of the childHere you can read when your child is ready to become a latchkey childmakes the transition from holiday time to school time easier

Image credits

Children in the classroom © twinsterphoto - stock.adobe.com

Children running with a backpack © davit85 - stock.adobe.com