Are you thinking about the coming school year (yet) and what you can do to get ready for it? Not sure what to do as a SLOCA parent? While we don’t have to plan curriculum or map out a yearly scope and sequence (since that is all done for us), there are various tasks that you can do over the summer to prepare physically and mentally for the coming year. Below are several suggestions (many of them are optional), and of course you can modify this list depending on your children’s levels:
• Ahead of time, purchase your books in the school store (if you haven’t yet!). Maybe meet up with a friend or two at the school store, get your books, and then have coffee together or go out to lunch. For the remainder of the summer, the bookstore is open on Tuesdays from 9 am-2:30 pm.
• Put your (or your child’s) name in each of your school books.
• Read through the Field Guide for your child’s level. Field Guides for the 2016-2017 school year will be coming soon!
• Prepare any curriculum that has cards or manipulatives. For example, with The Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading or All About Spelling – separate the cards and look over the book and supplemental materials.
• Photocopy and cut apart all the Mental Math strips from your Singapore Math Home Instructor’s Guide. (This is a BIG help to have this done in advance!) Some parents like to laminate these strips to make them reusable, and then let their kids use thin dry-erase (or wet-erase) markers with them. If you will be using this level again with another child, this is a great idea!
• Gather math manipulatives, such as place value cards and discs, base-10 blocks, counters, flash cards, etc. See your Field Guide and Singapore Math HIG for a list of manipulatives for your child’s math level.
• Gather (or purchase or check out from the library) books about American history, our science topics, or any other interesting educational topics your family might be interested in, to have around the house. You don’t have to read through every one of them on top of your weekly school assignments, but part of creating a classical home is having plenty of books and learning materials accessible. Often if it’s out, kids will eventually look at it.
• Organize your email and consider setting up folders for general SLOCA communication, weekly updates, as well as a folder for each child to keep grids and teacher emails organized.
• If you do any additional studies at home (such as life skills, health, faith studies, STEM, etc.) think through what you need for those subjects and gather materials or make a list, as well as think through how those will fit into your week.
• Talk to your child about the upcoming year – what are they looking forward to? Are they anxious about any particular subject, or moving up to a new level? This can spark a great conversation that can help you connect with and reassure your child. Is there anything they have a specific interest in and want to learn about at home? This can help you decide how to spend some of your E&E time, or what additional studies/activities you want to invest time in.
• Perhaps spend some of this time reading one of our suggested parent books for summer, for the 16/17 school year, or recommended reads for new SLOCA parents (the list of books was included in your summer packet). All of these books are available in the school bookstore.
• Hang out with other SLOCA parents/friends, to encourage each other, ask advice, share organization ideas, etc. We’re in this together!
We hope these suggestions will help you feel prepared and ready to start a wonderful year of learning. Many of these tasks can even be done with friends – getting ready for school doesn’t need to be “all work and no play.”
We would love to know: do you do anything else to prepare for the SLOCA school year? If so, leave a comment below and share your tips with us!
Here are a few local events to keep in mind for this week:
- Atascadero Movies in the Garden – starts this Saturday August 6th. Free to the public! See link for schedule and times.
- Morro Bay Summer Street Faire – Sunday, August 7th, 9 am – 5 pm. Free admission!
- Do you know about SLO Makerspace? It’s “a 24-7 access tool shop and craft center where you can work on projects, teach and take classes, and connect with local people and resources.” Has anyone tried this out? Sound like a fun way to spend time with friends or family!
