How to get students excited about the new school year

MADISON – A new school year presents a wealth of opportunities for students. At the dawn of a new school year, students have a chance to further their academic careers, student-athletes may be given a shot at making a team or moving up to varsity, and extracurriculars provide a chance for personal growth outside the classroom.

Despite all that a new school year represents, students may need a little extra motivation to get excited about going back to campus once summer winds down. A relaxing and largely obligation-free summer vacation can be tough to give up, as can mornings without alarm clocks. Parents recognize that kids might not be enthusiastic about the return of early mornings and sessions in the classroom. In such instances, parents can try the following strategies to get kids excited about a new school year.

· Make the first day special. First days can be challenging regardless of a person’s age. Professionals with years of experience in their field still feel first-day jitters when they begin a new job, so youngsters can be excused if what seems like a lack of excitement is really just nervousness about a new school year.

Parents can calm those nerves by doing something to make the first day special. Skip the standard cereal and prepare a homecooked breakfast or let kids buy lunch at the school cafeteria instead of packing a PB&J in their lunchbox. A little something special on the first day can go a long way toward getting kids excited about going back to school.

· Emphasize new subjects. As children advance through school, they’re typically exposed to more engaging subjects or challenged in ways that helps them build on previous years’ work.

Emphasizing new subjects or opportunities can increase kids’ excitement to get back in the school year swing of things. If a youngster likes playing an instrument, emphasize how the new school year is an opportunity to get better, play alongside other students and take a talent to new heights.

If students are old enough to take subjects they’ve long been interested in, such as a foreign language, make a point to emphasize how that opportunity has finally arrived.

· Create a school calendar. Schools typically make their yearly schedules available prior to the first day of school. Parents can peruse those schedules alongside their children and make a calendar noting special days. Mark down field trips, special events involving parents and students, school performances where kids get to act or sing on stage, and other notable moments during the school year.

Kids are bound to grow more excited about a new year when they see a year’s worth of fun events marked down on a calendar.

· Host a late summer get-together with friends. A late-summer pool party or play date with various friends can remind youngsters that they’re about to see their friends every day. That might be enough to make young students jump out of bed on the first day of school.

Students might be less than excited about the end of summer vacation and the dawn of a new school year. But there’s much parents can do to get kids excited about going back to school.