Hopes and Dreams for the New School Year {A way to set goals}

Do you ever have one of those days?

When you've been running around like crazy.

Cleaning handprints from the walls, washing spit up off your own clothes (and of course, your baby's as well), running errand after errand after errand.

Then you suddenly realize at, like, 9:45 p.m., that you told your sister you would post something today!  HA!

Been there.  Actually, I am there, right now.

Sorry for the delay, and I really wanted to share this earlier, however, my day just kept slipping away from me.

Today I am posting about goals.  Natalie brought up the fact that you should set some goals with your kids as they go back to school, if they haven't already.  I think that even if your kids have started school, you should still set goals.  You hear all the time that if you don't write it down, it will most likely not happen.  So write them down.

I love having goals to work toward.  Sometimes, children don't feel like setting specific goals (i.e. I will tie my shoes, I will read 20 min. each night) and so I like to use the hopes and dreams method of setting goals.  These become something that a child hopes, dreams, or wishes of accomplishing, or doing in the school year.  Children are really receptive to this way of making goals for what they want from the school year.

At the beginning of each school year, as a teacher, I would have all of my students write down their hopes and dreams.  Now, I am suggesting that parents and their children do this as well.  These hopes and dreams do NOT have to revolve only around school, though, it is important to include academic, social, and emotional/or maturity goals(i.e. tying their own shoe, doing their own hair, controlling anger, etc).

Before you sit down with your kids to map out their hopes and dreams for the new school year, make sure that you jot down some things that you hope and dream for you and your kids.  This will help you when it comes time to brainstorm with your children about their hopes and dreams.  Sometimes we can push gently nudge our kids in the right direction.  Especially if they are younger.  The younger your kids are, the more involved you will need to be in helping them develop their hopes and dreams for the new school year.

Here are some questions to ask yourself as you sit down to make your own hopes and dreams.
1.  What do you feel will be most important for your child in school this year?
2.  In what ways would you like to see your child grow socially?
3.  In what ways would you like to see your child grow academically?
4.  In what ways would you like to see your child grow emotionally/in maturity?

Now write down your goals.  Got it.  I wouldn't want you to forget. :)

Once you have written down your hopes and dreams for the year, print out the Hopes and Dreams printable. 

Call your children to the table and tell them that they will all be making hopes and dreams for the new year.  Next, if you have children PreK-2nd, read the book School Days, by B.G. Hennessy to them.  After reading, look back at the pictures and have your child(ren) point out things that they hope to do or dream about being able to accomplish this upcoming year.  If you have children 3rd-12th, you may choose to skip the book and have a discussion about what types of things they think will happen for them in the school year and what they really hope and dream about accomplishing.

After you have been brainstorming with them, share your hopes and dreams for the year as well.  This will let your child know that you are vested in their education.  You care.  You even have hopes, dreams, and desires for them.  Then, help them write down what they hope and dream about.  They can illustrate it or not, depending on your child.  Some children really need to see it and read it.  You know your child best.  If they are too old for the printable, just have them write it on a piece of notepad paper.

In case you were wondering, boys might like to make out their hopes and dreams while sitting on the table.  It's just something that they do.  :)

Such concentration requires your tongue to be out.

We displayed our hopes and dreams in the dining room.

Sometimes their hopes and dreams might not come true.  In this case, my daughter is really hoping that her class will have a pet.  It probably won't come true, however, it was her hope and we wrote it down.

I helped heavily with my 3 year old.

Lest you think you are finished, please, read on.  One more thing to make this stick with your kids.  Display their hopes and dreams.  In a common area of your home.  The kitchen, dining room, living room, office.  You pick, and then hang them up.  This way, you can revisit their hopes and dreams throughout the year.  You can see how they are doing.  Check in on them.  Make sure to take stock in your own hopes and dreams from time to time.  Are you helping your children the best you can to accomplish their dreams?  Are you helping yourself?

Starting Up the School Routine

I know a lot of mommies and teachers have already started trying to get back in the "school routine" for themselves and their families. Things like going to bed on time {no more late night Netflix binges!}, eating a healthy breakfast, keeping rooms tidy, and just plain getting organized.  Here are a few places that give some GREAT tips and ideas for making the transition back to school smooth and {hopefully} complaint free.

All teachers and moms know the key to a successful routine is 

starting earlier than later and STICKING TO IT!

1.  Setting Up and Decorating a Homework Area - This is a special way to make a homework area important to a child/student.  It gives them ownership which will help with their responsibility.

2. Scheduling Free Time and Family Time - Students love summer so much because they feel like they can do more of what they like.  To keep students in love with learning, they should have some time for that as well.  So be sure to add it to the calendar so it won't be forgotten!  Mama Smiles talks about this and gives other ideas for back to school organization.

3.  Make a Happy Mama List - I love all of Lindsey's ideas on here, but the free printable I love the most!  This would work as "The Happy Teacher List" as well.

4.  Get in the Back to School Mindset -  Another great list of tips, but my favorite is going over past achievements and goals from last school year in order to set goals for the upcoming school year.  My teacher heart is filled with joy at the thought of this!

5.  Preparation Timeline - Kerri was kind enough to give a timeline of important events that should be done before students enter the classroom.  If you are only a week away from school starting, pick the tasks that are most important for your child to get done and keep going from there.

6.  Have an End of Summer Party - Don't let the summer end without giving it a proper farewell!  This will create a sense of closure for children and will help you as you start to implement the ideas from above and from your own experience.


A routine that needs to start being implemented before school starts is often forgotten or dismissed.  Studying and/or Homework.  Like it or not, your child will be asked to complete math problems, complete a science experiment, and READ within the next few weeks.  All teachers hope that students are practicing these skills throughout the summer, but if your student has gotten out of the habit, include it in your plan to get ready for school.  "How am I supposed to come up with homework?" you might ask.  Here are some ideas...

~ MAKE IT A GAME
While driving to your child's last swimming lessons or sleepovers make up a game that will help him/her practice different intellectual skills.  For younger learners, you might challenge them to a rhyming challenge {the person who can't think of another rhyming word has to help the other with a chore at home}.  For more advanced students, you might ask them to try and say all of their 6s, 7s, and 8s times tables before the next song on the radio is over in exchange for some extra time outside or playing a video game.  The possibilities are endless!
~ MAKE IT REAL
Help your children to use things they've learned at home or in past years of school in the real world.  Ask your older child to go grocery shopping with you and pay attention to what is going to be purchased and then both of you can estimate what the bill will be.
When you go to the park for the last few times while it's nice and warm, play I Spy with specific things that will make their brain access prior knowledge {i.e. 'I spy a living thing that follows warmth from the sky.'  'I spy an acute angle.'}
~ START THE ROUTINE
If you choose to create a homework space for your student {extremely helpful!}, let him/her practice doing homework there early.  Ask them to write a story to share with the family {remind him/her that there is a writing process}.  Give them some math problems printed from here.  You can easily choose a topic that you know they will succeed in so they don't become frustrated, this is just for routine after all!

No one can do all of these, but one or two might be just what your family needs to have a little more organization and success at home for the next school year.


What other tips do you suggest for an organized/learning home?

JNatalie

Back to School Traditions

It seems that most families, over the years, has started a back to school tradition. Even if they aren't sure that they have one, if they look close enough, they will notice that there are certain things they do every year around back to school time. These traditions can be as easy as buying school clothes and supplies together.

I remember my mom would always plan a 'date' to go back to school shopping. The girls would all go together and have dinner out followed by school clothes shopping. Then the boys would get their turn. I have fond memories of these back to school times with my mom. We also attended back to school night together and would then head over to the store to get our needed supplies. I would like to start this as a tradition at my house at some point. Right now, with a baby, it's a bit hard to leave him home. Once he is older, I will give it a try. In the meantime I have been molding and shaping our back to school tradition. I usually do school shopping as a family event. Then the night before school starts we do a fashion show and have a school themed dinner and family night. If you are looking for a new tradition, check these out below.

Here are some sample pictures of our dining room table for our back to school dinner.  Now, believe me, I never really plan these things really far out in advance.  I mean, I know that every year I will do this, however, I just throw it together and so can you.

2012
•Take those school supplies you just bought for your kiddos and open them up, spread them around the table for decor.
•Use leftover party poms.  What?  You don't save yours....hmmmm.  I didn't think I would be the only one to save tissue poms.  Whatever.  You don't need them if you don't have some laying around.
•Raid your scrapbooking stash and cut a cute school themed pennant banner to hang from the window.  Don't have school themed paper, no sweat, just use primary colors.
•Finally, write a back to school message on your child's art easel.   

If you want to get fancy, you can print these 'You're so Sharp' tags at Eighteen25.  You can even do a whole party like they did. 

2013
{Side note...I was pregnant this year.  sigh.  So you know I did the bare minimum.  HA!}
•Went with left over balloons and some crepe paper streamers.
•Broke out the same back to school banner.
•Added some things that I have picked up along the way.  The puzzle pieces and foam shapes actually came from the Target Dollar Spot (LOVE that spot).  The name tags I did have left over from when I was teaching. The lunch trays are way cool.  I bought them at Oriental Trading so the kids could use them with beading, playdoh, coloring, really anything that you want to keep contained (i.e. those darn lovely loom elastics).  They come 6 to a pack.  You can get them here.

When putting together your back to school dinner table, just remember that kids love bright and exciting.  Remember we are trying to get kids excited for back to school!  As for the dinner, I like to either make comfort food or a smorgasbord of everyone's favorites.   

After dinner we hurry and put all those school supplies back in their backpacks for the first day of school and then it's time for our Back to School family night.  Usually these things happen each time : a fashion show of their new clothes, and dessert.  The lesson, however, changes depending on the kids.  Their age, their attention span, their needs and desires.

I stumbled on this lesson by My Mix of Six and thought it would be perfect for elementary aged children all the way up to college students.  A lesson that everyone needs to be reminded of.

The lesson is on civility and getting to know people for who they really are before judging them.  It helps to remind children that there are more things to a person than their appearance and their downfalls. 

The other back to school night tradition that I might try this year (due to the fact that my kindergartner is a bit scared) is this Kissing Hand one.  First, read The Kissing Hand, by Audrey Penn.

Then make kissing hand cookies.

Lastly, the morning of their very first day, we have a mini photo shoot.  I love having these pictures of them.  You can find the back to school printables for them to hold up here.

2012

2013

Plan to go to the school for drop off just a bit early and take your camera with you.  This way, you can capture your cutie on school grounds to get pictures to remind them of their playground, their classroom, and their school entryway.  It adds depth to the picture and tells a story on it's own.  If you don't drop off, you can pick up and do pictures then.

What do you do for Back to School?

Valerie

Getting to Know Your Child's Teacher

As our kiddos get back to school in the next month, we have a lot of planning and preparation to complete.  After we check off buying new school clothes, picking up school supplies, and getting them back on their school schedules, we might start to think about who their teacher will be. 

My daughter's class list just went up last Friday.  It was exciting to see who her teacher was going to be.  We went right to the school website to check the teacher out.  Most, if not all teachers now have a website.  If you can't find one, make sure you ask the teacher at back to school night.  These websites have class information, a calendar, and a little bit about the teacher. 

Of course, I wanted to know more about my daughter's teacher so I can use his/her interests in my teacher appreciation gifts throughout the year.  I've seen a few of these questionnaires around the blogosphere, but I decided to make one of my own.  I'm sharing it with you today!!  If you want to use it at back to school night, great!, if not, you can save it for teacher appreciation week.  This way you can personalize your appreciation gifts. 

For a Mrs.

 {here}

For a Mr.

{here}

We should get to know our teachers a little better, after all, they love getting to know our kiddos.  And, yes, I am a fan of The King and I.  Best wishes as you get to know your child's teacher.

Valerie

Back to School Teacher Gift Printables

This is a cute tag that can be attached to anything and everything.  If you are asked (or volunteer) to bring a box of tissues, hand sanitizer, or skein of yarn to the classroom you can tie it on there.  If you want to give a small treat or a favorite book to your child's new teacher it would be perfect for that too!  Lower grade tags found here.  Upper grade tags found here.

I don't think I really loved chocolate until I became a teacher.  Chocolate in any form.  I love Milk Duds because they're a chocolate treat that lasts longer because it's harder to chew.  I'm sure your child's teacher would enjoy them too.  And with this adorable tag, how could you go wrong?  Get the printable here.

One last one can be attached to anything SWEET!  Candy, soda pop, cookies, sweet tea, lemonade, berries, jam, trail mix, or your favorite sweet treat.  Here is the printable.

JNatalie

{30 easy} Back to School Teacher Gifts

While I was teaching, only one student brought me a little gift at the beginning of the school year.

One.

In four years of teaching.

Now, up until that one student brought me anything, I never expected anyone to do so.  I never even really thought about it.  When I was a child, we always gave our teachers a Christmas gift and an End of the Year gift.  Of course, with Pinterest becoming such a driving force in our society these days, I'm guessing that more and more teachers are receiving at least a little bit more love for the first day of school.

The thing is this, good or bad, I remember that child to this day...7 years later.  I even remember the gift she gave me.  It wasn't anything glamorous or expensive.  Just sayin'.  It does set up a rapport and the teacher will remember you and your child because you went out of your way to send a little something for the beginning of a new year.  It doesn't have to be big, cute, or expensive.  Most of the things I send with my kids for the first day of school cost less than 3 dollars.  It's worth it to me.  I never try to reinvent the wheel, I've never really been that great at creating something from air.  I'm a stay at home mom.  My brain isn't always in the creative mindset.  Okay, maybe it rarely to never is anymore.  I have done the searching for you though.  Here is a roundup of my favorite {cheap} back to school teacher gifts.

 1.  Back to School USB Charger Teacher Gift - This is a great teacher gift for a Mr. or a Mrs.  They found these chargers at Michaels.
2.  Washi Tape Teacher Gift - So I am a new convert to Washi tape, and, it's AMAZING!  Pretty cheap too, only 3 dollars a roll at Target.  Look in the school supplies by the regular tape.
3.  Meet the Remark{er}able Teacher - Who doesn't need markers for the new school year?  You could even break up a package of markers and give 2 or 3 to the teacher instead of the whole package.
4.  Back to School Lotion - Looks like this printable has been changed.  Go and check it out.  Lotion for back to school is great because teacher's are constantly washing their hands to prevent illness.

5.  If I Can Give a Hand Gift - Not only are you giving a practical and useful back to school basic, you are offering future assistance to the teacher with this one.  Make sure you write your contact info so the teacher knows to call when she/he needs a hand in class.
6.  Happy New School Year - How easy and cute are these??  Just a package of pencils, a notepad, and a clipboard. 
7.  My Future is Looking Sharp Gift - Again, you can't go wrong with markers.  You can decide how many markers to give.  If you have 2 teachers you could just split a package between the two of them.  Easy peasy.
8.  {Take Note} Apple Post-it Note Gift - I have seen these apple post-it note dispensers at Target and Walmart.  Very cute and fun for a teacher.

9. Let's Start the Year off Write - So cute and easy.  Every teacher loves a good notebook to jot down things for their students.  Plus, if you want to give something a little extra, you could add that Target gift card pictured (though it's not necessary).
10.  Happy First Day - The thing I love about this one, is you can really put this tag on just about anything. (i.e. donuts, apples, candy, school supplies, anything you want)  Also, this one has alternative printables for other occasions as well.
11.  Happy New School Year - Cute, practical, fun.  I love the pencils with the name flags.  This ensures those pencils make it back to your teacher.
12. If Teachers Were Flowers, I'd Pick You - Now this one could be more on the expensive side if you choose to make it that way.  You could just buy a single stemmed flower or small bunch of flowers for around 4 dollars.  It's up to you how big you go.  I will tell you that flowers on the first day are wonderful.  Though my students never brought me any as a teacher, my husband brought me some on the very first day of school my very first year.  It's a symbol of a fresh start.

13.  I'm Doing 'Flips' That You're My Teacher - I used this one for my daughter's teachers last year.  They loved them!  Anything chocolate for the first couple of weeks is greatly appreciated, unless your teacher despises chocolate, to help with the stress of starting a new year.
14.  Edible School Glue Gift - This one is a little more labor intensive, but oh so cute!  I especially love this printable and think it would look just as cute tied to a package of glue sticks.  That would be much easier for busy mommies.  Just make sure you don't use the edible school glue tag for real glue...no brainer.
15.  Can't Wait to Have Mounds of Fun - As I said before, chocolate is always a winner in my book!  So cute and delicious.
16.  You Were 'Mint' to Be My Teacher - How sweet!  A surefire way to start the year off right.  Proclaiming we were meant to be together.  What teacher wouldn't love that?

17.  This is Going to 'BEE' a Great Year - Oh, how I love this idea!  Honey is so versatile and can be put to great use by a teacher.  (i.e. for your rolls, your scratchy throat, your tea)
18.  So Happy I Got the Most 'Pop'ular Teacher - Ok, so flattery will get you nowhere everywhere.  Who doesn't want to be thought of as popular?  Plus, you could go big or small here.  Tie the tag to a single bag of popcorn, a box of popcorn, or as they did here, a bucket of popcorn filled with school supplies.
19.  I'm Looking Forward to a 'Souper' Year - Yummy!  I love these soup mixes and since school is the mark of Fall, we could all use a little warming up.  I think this might be my BTS teacher gift this year!
20.   I'm Totally Bananas about Being in Your Class - You could make banana muffins, like the picture, or make it easier on yourself.  Give the teacher a bunch of bananas.  Or banana runts.  Or banana taffy.  You decide.

21.  This Year is Gonna Rock - Easy, nostalgic, an winner.  You could easily package a few different flavors together and amp this one up a bit. 
22.   Apple Teacher Gift - An apple for the teacher.  This goes way back.  Easy, and with a cute poem, you can't lose.  It's also a perfect healthy addition to their teacher's lunch, or if the teacher gets enough of them, a yummy pie.  :)
23.  I'm 'Soda'-Lighted You Are My Teacher - I've used a version of this for the end of year and the teacher's LOVED it.  I amped it up a bit and gave a six pack of soda.  However, if you want to keep down cost, go for the single soda.  Any kind will do.  Most teachers adore soda.  I never was one to have a soda a day, however, if I got one, I would drink it as a special treat.
24.  I'm Going to be One Smart Cookie - If you don't want to get cookies in a mason jar, and if you don't own any mason jars, then tie this tag to a box of cookies from your local bakery.  Or a package of cookies off the grocery shelf.  Either way, it will be cute and yummy!

25.  One 'Extra'ordinary Teacher - A couple packs of Extra gum and you are ready to go.  Again, you could just go with one pack or multiple packs. 
26.  To Do List for First Day of School - NUTELLA!!!!  The star of Pinterest.  Now, I love Nutella, however, I've heard rumors that there are people out there that don't like it as much.  Lucky for you, this printable could be used with any chocolate.
27.  So Happy to Have a Berry Special Teacher - Although the paper strawberries are adorable, they are a bit labor intensive.  If you are in a hurry, just pop that tag on a carton of strawberries, or a strawberry hand soap or lotion.
28. I am Jumping for 'Joy' to be in Your Class - More chocolate.  You cannot go wrong with chocolate and coconut in my opinion.  This printable is so cute!

29.  Have a Bright School Year - Highlighters are a great Back to School gift for teachers.  I used highlighters in my classroom and allowed students to highlight important things in their homework.  They loved it!
30.  There's No 'Mistake' About it - I like this idea.  There is no link, because my computer is warning against going to the website I found this from.  I don't want all of you to get scammed or have malicious software transmitted.  You're welcome.  So just go from the picture.  You can get these small containers of pencil top erasers at Target, Walmart, and I've even seen them at the Dollar Tree.  Type up your own tag and you are ready to go.

Another bonus to the back to school teacher gift is your child will just LOVE giving their new teacher a gift.  Let them write out a card or draw a picture as well.  They can introduce themselves in that picture.  The child will love it, the teacher will love it.  One caution...try not to overgift your teachers.  It's important to appreciate them, however, if you go out and buy a 50 dollar gift card to HomeGoods the teacher may feel guilty or awkward.  It's best to keep things simple and thoughtful.  Now, if you know that teacher loves HomeGoods, maybe a 10 dollar gift card would work better.  :)

Happy Gifting!!

Valerie

Back To School Night: Is it THAT important??

Late nights, late mornings, swimming lessons, skinned knees, bike rides, short hikes, bloody noses, boredom, fights with siblings, complaints, excitement, fireworks, freedom, picnics, and so on and so forth.

Oh, the joys of summer.  You know what I mean.  Of course, I love summertime.  To have my kids home with me so that at a moments notice we can be at the park, or the mountains, or the dentist.  All without having to adjust schedules and pull kids out of school.  The world is our classroom in the summer.  This also means that I am the teacher during the summer.  I love helping my kids to learn about bugs, gardens, and the importance of sunscreen.

(I also love bedtime.  My goodness, teaching is exhausting.)

Now comes the time for freshly sharpened pencils, new folders, and never been used crayons.  Time for back to school.  I love this time of year!  Probably due to the fact that I taught for those few short years before becoming a mommy.  The fresh start, the new faces, the opportunity for success.  These things drove me and hyped me up at back to school time while I was teaching.  Now, the coin has flipped and I am standing on the other side.  I'm the parent.

So what does this mean? 

I'm different in the fact that I know what the teacher has been doing all summer....preparing, dreaming, and hoping for a wonderful school year.  Teachers don't know who will be in their class...how they will act...what they are capable of.  Teachers only know that they LOVE teaching and LOVE children.  Your children.  Our children. 

I also know that teachers put a lot of work into back to school night.  (A very special night where teachers and students first lay eyes on each other)  For this reason I believe that attendance at back to school night is essential to starting your (and your child's) year off right.  Of course, if you have a more pressing matter (a wedding, funeral, bar mitzvah), by all means skip back to school night.  However, if you are planning on not attending because you just can't tear yourself away from the new hot sitcom, please reconsider.

This is what you can expect at back to school night.

-Meet the teacher
This is so important for our kiddos.  If we can bring them with us to back to school night and let them have the opportunity to meet their teacher before school starts, it can ease any anxiety they may be feeling.

-See the classroom
Your child will know where to go the first day of school.  They know where their seat is and can see what the classroom is decorated like.  This can excite them for the first day of school.  They will be more willing to go to class alone if they know how to get there and where they sit when they get there.

-Meet fellow classmates
Every year the worry that your child won't have friends in their new class creeps in.  This is a chance to see other students in the class.  Your child will feel better knowing who is in the class with them.

-Hear from the teacher
This is probably the most important part of the night.  Most teachers will want to talk to each child or with all the children collectively about the classroom, what they will be learning this year, and a little bit about herself/himself.

Teachers usually want to talk to parents as well.  Teachers outline the school year and what is expected of your child and you as the year progresses.  They will go over rules of the classroom, homework requirements, grading, attendance, book orders, birthdays, procedures for certain circumstances (i.e., medicine, checking your student out of school, absence, and volunteering), daily schedules, and donations.  Each teacher is different, so don't convince yourself that you've heard it all before.  Each teacher has their own way of handling these things in their classroom and will want to make sure that you are well versed in their ways to help things run smoothly throughout the year.  You will be given a packet with all of this information to refer to as needed.

There will be paperwork.  Bring your pens, and any information you don't readily have. (i.e., your pediatrician's name and number, names of those who can pick your child up from school and their numbers, and your spouse's work number)  If for some reason you don't have time during back to school night to fill out all of these papers, most teachers allow you to take home the info sheets and permission slips and return them to school during the first week.  Please do this.  Teachers rely on this information more than you might think.  Also, if your child has allergies of any kind, now is the time to inform the teacher.  With a form like this.  A good idea is to have a picture of your child, a description of their allergy, possible symptoms, who to call if your child suffers a reaction, the medication they require should they have a reaction, and how to administer such medicine. You can find more information for you and your child with allergies here.

You will also be given contact information for your teacher.  This way you can email/call to set up a time apart from back to school night to discuss your child and any important things the teacher may need to know, such as learning disorders, allergies, etc.  Please refrain from bringing all of this up at back to school night.  This is a time when you are with your child and they may not appreciate you bringing attention to their special needs in front of everyone.  You can email the teacher later that night if you really want the teacher to know something before school starts.

-Receive a school supply list (a list of things your child will need to bring to school ASAP)
Teachers are given a small monetary budget for supplies in the classroom.  This list is to enhance your child's learning environment.  There will also be times throughout the year that your child's teacher may ask for items for the classroom.  If you have the means, please help and supply those things.  There is never enough money for everything and speaking from experience, a teacher's pocketbook is usually the fallback plan to get supplies needed throughout the year.

-Volunteer Signup and Donation Wishlist
Not every teacher has volunteer signups ready to go at back to school night, however, this may be a great opportunity to sign up for volunteering in the classroom.  Even if you are unable to go during the school day to volunteer, some teachers require help after school hours.  Inquire with your teacher if you would like an opportunity to help in your child's class.

Donation Wishlists may be available as well.  If your teacher has planned throughout the year for any necessary items for a given month, they may have you sign up to bring those things during the assigned time.
 
-Q&A
Your child's teacher may have a portion of the night for Q&A.  This will help parents, teachers, and students understand how the year will go.  If you have questions, please ask them.  Teachers are humans too, they make mistakes sometimes.  If you ask your question it could clear up something for everyone.  If you feel uncomfortable asking your question at back to school night, please email your teacher and clear up any confusion.

And of course, if your child is a kindergartner like mine, you will be able to see the school and how to get there.  My child is a very sensitive soul and I feel that we will have some tears for the first day of school, however, I'm hoping that attending back to school night will help ease her fears and get her excited for her new adventure.

So mommies, please try to take your kids to back to school night.  It will help to transition back to school.

Valerie