As summer winds down and the school year approaches, achieving back-to-school success can feel overwhelming. With a few smart strategies and some forward planning, you can transform the chaos into a smooth and stress-free transition. From buying supplies bit by bit to batch-cooking meals, these sanity-saving tips will help you and your family start the school year on the right foot.
Buy supplies a little at a time
A lot of us are used to the one big back-to-school haul before school starts, but if the mere idea of another back-to-school shopping trip is already stressing you out, here’s an alternative. Instead of a stressful, one-time shopping spree, spread out your school supply purchases over a few weeks.
This approach eases the financial burden, allows you to snag deals as they pop up, and makes shopping more manageable and less rushed. Plus, you can avoid the back-to-school shopping crowds, making the process smoother and more enjoyable. You and your child can easily find the perfect outfit for the first day of school and pick out essential supplies without the stress.
“To stay sane, I try to do as much in advance as I can,” says Heidi Bruaw from Real Life of Lulu. “These days, our school posts supply lists for the following year on the last day. Throughout the summer, I buy a few supplies bit by bit when I find them on sale so I don’t have to make one big trip when the stores are so busy right before school starts.”
As Bruaw mentions, “I buy clothes throughout the summer when they’re on sale too. It keeps me from being overwhelmed by all the crowds in the days before school begins.” By taking these steps, you can make back-to-school shopping a much more pleasant experience.
Ease back into your routine early
Most kids fall into an irregular routine during the summer. Bedtimes get pushed back a little later, mealtimes are not so rigid, playtime becomes scattered throughout the day, and so on. To bring them back to their usual schedule, it’s important to do so gently and gradually.
According to Children’s Minnesota, setting children back into a regular routine before school helps reduce stress and makes it easier for them to transition into a consistent schedule again. Kids thrive on routines, after all.
Shelby from Fit As a Mama Bear shares her experience, saying, “As a mom of three, I’ve found that in my house, we thrive on routine. So, before back-to-school even happens, I begin weaning us into the routine we need for school days with earlier mornings, more structured bedtimes, etc. This starts about three weeks in advance of schools opening again.”
Batch cook make-ahead meals
Batch-cooking freezer meals before school starts is a lifesaver for busy parents. Having a stash of delicious, home-cooked meals ready to go means no more scrambling to figure out dinner after a long day.
Bruaw emphasizes the benefits, saying, “As I have time in the summer, I prepare freezer meals that I can dump in the slow cooker on busy nights in the fall after sports and activities begin.”
This approach ensures your family eats healthy, even on the busiest nights. Additionally, you’ll save money by buying ingredients in bulk, especially with batch recipes that freeze well like stuffed chicken, lasagna and casseroles.
Involve your kids in their own schedules
Getting kids involved in their own schedules is a great way to foster independence and responsibility. When kids learn to manage their own time, they develop essential life skills like planning and prioritization. It also reduces the need for constant reminders, leading to less arguing and nagging.
Michelle Price from Honest and Truly shares her strategy for managing her kids’ schedules effectively. She explains, “I cannot stand to nag, and my kids hate being nagged. Instead, I created a daily to-do list with assigned times and laminated it.”
Her approach involves assigning responsibility to her kids. “My kids are in charge of getting things done according to the times on the sheet, and they know it. They have to be dressed by a certain time, have breakfast by a certain time, etc.,” she adds.
This method helped eliminate the need for constant reminders. “But it wasn’t me nagging them, and it has worked beautifully for us for years,” Price concludes.
Do a summer cleaning
Take advantage of the kids’ summer break to have them purge clutter from their rooms and assist with deep cleaning the entire house. This not only helps maintain a tidy home but also teaches them proper cleaning methods.
Bruaw shares, “We also do a deep clean of the house before school starts so we can spot clean in the first couple of weeks when it’s busy.” A clean living space helps us all stay relaxed.
Don’t forget about the car. You’ll want it spotless for another year of drop-offs and pick ups, so take it for a thorough car wash. An essential oil diffuser for the car is a handy way to keep it smelling fresh, especially after all those extracurricular activities.
Make homework fun and manageable
Kids rarely like homework, especially right after school starts when they’re still reeling from days of non-stop play. Fortunately, there are clever parenting hacks to make homework more manageable and even fun.
Price shares some effective strategies for managing homework. She says, “As my kids got more involved in sports and other after-school activities, it meant lots of drive and waiting time, so I put together a homework box kit.”
This comprehensive kit contains all the necessary supplies. “It had everything they would need to complete any assigned homework, from rulers to notebooks to clipboards to write on to erasers and so much more,” she explains.
By having everything ready in a grab-and-go package, there are no excuses for not completing homework. “This left no excuses, and it helped them get their homework done when they had downtime, which in turn, gave them more free time once we were back home again.”
Prep breakfast at night
Prepping breakfast at night can be a game-changer for busy mornings. Shelby shares, “I find that for our mornings to work, we need to have things like breakfast made ahead of time. The kids and I rotate as to who makes breakfast the night before, and it’s always something simple like baked protein oats, protein and chia pudding.”
Prepping meals ahead of time also makes it easier to choose more balanced and nutrient-dense foods. This way, you can avoid quick, highly processed options like sugary cereals and vending machine items.
Don’t forget the snacks
Forget the ultra-processed snacks. There are plenty of easy snacks you can make in five minutes that are healthier, more balanced and cheaper.
Shelby shares her strategy for simplifying lunch preparations. “We also keep a lot of homemade protein snacks on hand to make simple, yet filling lunches,” she says.
Every week, she and her family spend a short amount of time preparing these snacks. “Each week, we whip up no-bake protein balls, bars and granola in about 30 minutes so that we don’t spend too much time throughout the week stressing about what we need!”
Execute your back-to-school plan
Ready to set yourself up for back-to-school success? Follow these strategies from experienced parents and say goodbye to your dreaded end-of-summer stresses while approaching the season with joy and confidence.
Jessica Haggard is the creator of the blog Easy Homemade Life. She inspires and supports homemakers with easy recipes, natural home cleaning tips and DIY tutorials for personal care products to promote a happy and healthy home environment.