Back-to-School Tips for Families
After a summer of easy, flexible schedules, families who don’t homeschool are once again landing upon the busy fall school season. Sending our littles back into a rigorous school schedule can be challenging for both parents and children. In this article, I’m sharing some smart strategies to help ease transitions and set your family up for a smoother school year ahead.
Adjusting to New Routines
With a lot more structure in fall schedules, it can take a little time for little bodies (and big) to adjust. Allowing for some transition time as children settle into earlier wake-up times, hectic mornings and longer, more demanding days can help to ease the transition.
Establishing dedicated time for family connection, calm evening rituals, and a consistent bedtime schedule also help to ease children through this tricky adjustment period. Children may need a little time to decompress after a long school day as well. Be cognizant of signs like difficulty waking in the morning, irritability, trouble concentrating, and emotional outbursts. When experiencing any of these signs, a little more rest time and nutritional support can help children adjust to the new pace.
Fueling for School
Packing lunches with hearty yet healthy sustenance significantly helps to power kids through long school days. Naturally nutritious, carbohydrate-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, honey, potatoes, and melon are stellar at supporting sustained energy throughout school days.
We know that some kids can feel left out by what other kids bring to school, so consider cutting whole foods into fun shapes and packing them into colorful Bento boxes. Foods that work well for this kind of thing are watermelon, apples, pineapple, mango, cucumbers, carrots, bell peppers, and potatoes. Also think about yummy dips for kids to dip their fun shapes into, such as this pizza hummus or this guacamole.
Also consider your child’s hydration needs. Sending them to school with a BPA-free water bottle daily will help to keep their energy up. We can lose energy when we are dehydrated. Also consider sending your child to school with coconut water, which is an outstanding source of natural electrolytes and superior hydration to help fuel your child through the school day as well. Coconut water is commonly sold in small Tetra Pak cartons that can be added to school lunchboxes and sipped during lunch and snack times.
When home from school, consider offering frequent healthy snacks and hydration between meals to support your child’s energy needs and help them power through the second half of their day. Keeping blood sugar balanced is also key to helping minimize energy crashes and meltdowns. In this article, I cover common signs of low blood sugar and ways you can holistically support your child through this kind of issue.
If your child is exhibiting ongoing signs of low blood sugar or struggles with energy, irritability, or other common signs during the school day, consider pursuing a doctor’s note that will allow your child to consume frequent food and snacks throughout their school day.
Fall Wellness Starts Now
Before cold and flu season hits, think about bolstering little immune systems to protect them from colds, flus, and other viruses. Building your children’s immune health is a smart way to tackle the season. These immune-building powerhouses go a long way toward keeping busy fall school schedules from derailing:
Zinc
An invaluable supplement to keep in your medicine cabinet year round, zinc is the nutrient that is most commonly deficient in most people today. Zinc is essential for not only cold and flu protection but overall support and protection against infections, stealth virus, or chronic illness, especially if your child is already dealing with any kind of symptom or condition.
Vimergy carries a naturally-sweet, fast-absorbing liquid formula for children that carries an outstanding track record. Serving sizes are based on your child’s age. I stand by the Vimergy brand for its clean, alcohol-free ingredients and unsurpassed efficacy. As a Vimergy affiliate, first-time Vimergy customers can save 20% with this link , and returning customers can save 5% with this link .
Vitamin C
The benefits of vitamin C go far beyond immune protection. Vimergy’s Micro-C is a proprietary form of vitamin C that is at once gentle and potent. It containing several plant-based sources of vitamin C, including grape seed extract, acerola, rutin, and rose hips (the most bioavailable form of vitamin C).
Unlike harsher forms of vitamin C, micro C is buffered, gentle on the stomach, and can be taken on an empty stomach or by sensitive individuals. First-time Vimergy customers can save 20% with this link , and returning customers can save 5% with this link .
B12
Whether your family eats a plant-based or meat-based diet, nearly everyone today is deficient in this vital nutrient, and according to Medical Medium, the highest quality source of B12 to support the brain and nervous system is a formulation containing both adenosylcobalamin and methylcobalamin. This type of B12 contains electrolytes that support the brain when under stress, boosting children both mentally and emotionally.
But B12 is not just about brain and nervous system support; it’s a potent protector of the immune system. Vimergy is the brand I trust most for its high-quality liquid B12 kids formula containing both adenosylcobalamin and methylcobalamin. First-time Vimergy customers can save 20% with this link, and returning customers can save 5% with this link.
Lemon Balm
Also known as Melissa officinalis, lemon balm is must-have soothing balm for little bodies in today’s hectic, fast-paced world. Lemon balm calms nerves, especially those around the stomach and digestive tract. It is also very high in many trace minerals.
Lemon balm is also anti-parasitic, antiviral, and antibacterial, fighting all kinds of long-term stealth viruses that lurk behind chronic symptoms and conditions. First-time Vimergy customers can save 20% with this link, and returning customers can save 5% with this link.
It’s important to note that these powerhouse supplements are not just for kids. Consider purchasing the adult formulations of these cornerstone supplements for lifetime immune support against today’s myriad stealth viruses. Keeping the whole family protected all year-round is a very smart way to help avoid disruption and stress due to unforeseen illness.
Anticipate Blood Sugar Dips
Planning meals and snacks ahead of time can be hugely helpful toward avoiding erratic behavior. When my children were young, I regularly placed a platter of fruits and vegetables on the kitchen table for the kids to nosh on, usually about an hour or so before dinner – a time when I sometimes noticed behavioral shifts. Depending on how close we were to dinner, I sometimes included a healthy dip for them to dip their fruits and veggies into. An added bonus is that hungry kids are often more willing to eat healthy foods.
Give Yourself Grace
A sense of independence and control over food choices can be important to some children. Offering a variety of healthy, colorful choices and letting kids build their own plate is a great way to encourage healthy eating while letting a child feel a sense of autonomy.
This kind of scenario creates a safe structure. Mom remains responsible for what foods are offered while the child gets an appropriate amount of control over which foods they choose to eat.
Another option is to ask whether the child prefers apples or oranges, rather than asking what they would like to eat, for example. This communicates that the child’s preferences matter within a healthy boundary.