Summer is quickly slipping by and before you know it kids will be heading back to school. This is a good time for all of us to think what that means for each of us as community members.
If you are a parent, start getting your student back into routines. Start getting them to bed earlier so they get a good night’s sleep. Make sure they are reading, or being read to, every day. Many schools have an open house before school starts. Plan on attending the open house– especially if your child is going into a new school this year. It’s a good chance to meet the teachers and other school staff. Once the school year starts make sure your child has breakfast each day – either at home or at school. See to it that your child attends school every day and arrives on time. Research shows that students who have 95 percent or better attendance do much better in their academics. Also, check your child’s backpack each day for homework, school notices, teacher notes, etc. Make sure you have contact with your child’s teacher not only at conference time but whenever you have concerns about his or her schoolwork.
Even if you don’t have a child in school, you still are important to our schools and our community’s children. Consider volunteering at your neighborhood school. Many of our children need extra tutoring or a caring adult to mentor them. School resources are tight so think about making a contribution to a school or supporting school fundraisers. Attend concerts, plays, math competitions, science fairs and art fairs at your local schools to encourage the students. And don’t forget to attend the games of Henry and North High Schools’ sport teams and cheer on our student athletes!
All of us need to be mindful of children walking to school and on bus stops. While children are told that they should look both ways before crossing streets and not play at the bus stops and run into the street, kids don’t always remember. Please slow down and keep an eye out for our children. Also, remember to always stop and not pass a school bus with its red lights flashing and stop sign out. It’s not only unsafe; it’s illegal to do so!
Together we can all help our community children be safe, become lifelong learners and be the best they can be!