The 10
Commandments of
1 THOU SHALT SET A
PROPER BEDTIME.

It can be difficult to transition from the
long, fun-filled days of summer to the more rigid
schedule of fall. Start a week or two early. Get
back into the habit of going to bed early and rising
at the appropriate time. Maybe even add 15 or 20
minutes to the morning scramble time to ease
the pressure. Select clothing the night before. Eat
breakfast together. Your children will arrive at
school ready to begin their day.

2 THOU SHALT DO THE
DREADED PAPERWORK.

3 THOU SHALT WAIT A WEEK
OR TWO BEFORE MAKING
CHANGES. By Jan Pierce
A retired teacher’s advice on how to
make the most of a new school year
THE FIRST FEW DAYS OF SCHOOL are important ones for children.

Meet and greets, new rules and expectations, a few queasy tummies — they’re
all part of getting the school year underway. For parents, it’s a time for fresh
starts too, sometimes burdened with a few doubts and fears. Did he get the right
teacher? Will she learn to read?
Relax, parents. You can get this new school year off to a great start.

I taught school, mostly first and second grades, from 1967 to 2007, and then
retired. I had a few years off (for good behavior) while I raised my two children.

I loved teaching. And I especially loved the first day of school, when everything in
the classroom was fresh and new. Crayons had sharp points, glue containers were
full. Desks were scrubbed and boasted beautifully printed nametags atop each one.

Children arrived that first morning all put together, wearing smiles of anticipation.

I often met a few parents that day as well. They were the ones who couldn’t quite
allow their children to ride the bus; they needed to see them safe and sound to the
classroom. I understood. I cried the day my eldest boarded the bus for first grade,
later telling me it was like “a ride at Disneyland.”
Read and follow the 10 commandments of back to school, and you’ll be well on
your way to a wonderful school year.

20 Washington FAMILY SEPTEMBER 2021
The one and only time I intervened in selecting
the teacher for my son, I was dead wrong. I got
him the older, more experienced teacher and
we were both bored for the rest of the year. (My
son and I, not the teacher.) Trust the system.

Children are placed with a certain teacher based
on the needs of both the child and for balance
in the classroom. The ratio of boys to girls, the
number of special needs children or English-
language learners, for example, have been taken
into consideration.

If you suspect that a change may be necessary,
wait a bit and see how your child adjusts. You may
be surprised. (Of course, in any situation that has
potential for serious problems, you as the parent
must act in your child’s best interests.)
4 THOU SHALT VOLUNTEER.

I can’t emphasize enough the value of
giving something to your child’s classroom
experience. If you work during the day, you can
still send in cupcakes or take time off to chaperone
a field trip. If you have young children at home,
arrange child care trades and volunteer to listen
DEZEIN/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS
Teachers and administrators take
advantage of the first week of school to get all
their ducks in a row. They want current address
and telephone information. They need to know
who to call in case of illness or emergency.

And teachers want to get a handle on the children
in their room. They want to know which parents
will be available to help them and who has special
health conditions.

Even though the sea of papers coming home
threatens to spill over into the trash can, don’t
let that happen. Take the time to complete the
paperwork and find a safe way to transport them
into the teacher’s waiting hands. The teacher will
love you for this.




to children read, play reading and math
games or provide any other help the
teacher needs. One-on-one attention
is very valuable in the classroom, and
you can offer that with no training in
education. Children are very aware of
their parents’ attitude toward school
and learning in general. Be the parent
who shows up, supports and gives.

5 THOU SHALL ATTEND
OPEN HOUSES AND
PERFORMANCES. or attitude, pay close attention.

The problem may be as simple as
illness or mild discouragement, but
it could be something bigger such as
bullying incidents or fears of failure.

Talk it out and take appropriate action.

9 THOU SHALL FEEL
FREE TO COMMUNICATE
WITH THE TEACHER.

Teachers are busy, and they may give
the impression they don’t have time
to talk with you. That’s wrong. They
See commandment number four. Show have time before the bell rings in the
morning, after school and during the
up. It matters.

evenings. They often like to email back
and forth. Teachers care about their
THOU SHALT MAKE AN students, and they’re usually eager to
hear what you have to say.

APPOINTMENT FOR
6 IMPARTING IMPORTANT
INFORMATION. Open houses and other large school
gatherings are wonderful for a positive
group experience. But if you have a
question about what happens in the
classroom, your child’s successes or
needs, behavior issues and the like,
please make an appointment to visit
with the teacher before or after the
school day. Teachers are encouraged
by parents’ concern and interest in
their child’s performance. They want to
give you their full attention to discuss
important topics.

COLEMATT/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS
7 THOU SHALL BE PART
OF A TEAM EFFORT.

The school, the family and the
child make up a learning team. There
may be other teaching specialists
involved in your child’s learning
experience — speech therapists, social
workers and reading specialists. Speak
positively about your child’s teachers
and the school program. While no
system is perfect, most educational
professionals want to cooperate with
parents and address their concerns.

Your child will know if you’re unhappy
with the school and it will reflect in his
or her attitudes and behaviors.

8 THOU SHALT PAY
ATTENTION TO
CHANGES IN
ATTITUDE AND BEHAVIOR.

If your child has changes in behavior
10 THOU SHALL DO
THY BEST TO
“LET GO” IN
APPROPRIATE MEASURE.

It’s hard to entrust your child to
anyone but yourself. But growing up
is a series of letting-go experiences.

Kids go off to preschool, kindergarten,
first grade and before you know it
they’re ready for high school. The time
flies by, and you can’t stop it. Further,
you don’t want to. Let your children
become strong and independent one
step at a time. It’s hard to let go, but
it’s necessary.

As you know by now, children
don’t come with a user’s manual.

Parenting is a tough job, and each
child is unique. You’ve done your
best to prepare your child for school
and the world, and now you have to
entrust him to another adult’s care.

You have to allow her to fend for
herself for a large chunk of each day.

You have to trust he’ll make good
choices. It’s hard.

On the other hand, most teachers are
not doing their extremely complicated
and demanding job for the pay they
receive. They’re in the classroom
because they love children and the
learning process. There’s nothing more
rewarding to us teacher types than to
see a little face light up during a read
aloud or when a new concept is grasped.

It’s pure gold.

Here’s wishing you and your child a
most successful school year. n
Can You Spell
S-U-C-C-E-S-S? W
inning the Scripps National Spelling Bee requires a
little bit of luck and a whole lot of effort. Time magazine
reports that this year’s winner, 14-year-old Zaila Avant-garde of
Louisiana, spends seven hours a day studying words. She also
has three spelling tutors and special computer programs to
help her prep.

Your child may not aspire to be the next Zaila, but they might
improve their spelling with these tips from Akshita Balaji of
Merrifield, Virginia, a semifinalist in the 2021 Scripps National
Spelling Bee.

Learn a second (or third) language
When it comes to deciphering unusual words, it helps to be
familiar with various languages. English is, after all, a West
Germanic language with influences from Latin and French. It also
borrows words from nearly every other language on the planet for
good measure. Of course, if English followed a simple set of rules,
there wouldn’t be much need for a spelling bee, would there?
Many bee contestants try to be as polyglot as they can.

Scripps National Spelling Bee participant Akshita Balaji, who tied
for 51st place in 2019 and came in 102nd this year, takes Spanish
as her school elective but also studies French and German in her
spare time. The rising ninth grader learned French by watching
YouTube vlogs and using the Duolingo app.

Expand your vocabulary
Although reading the dictionary might seem tedious — the
Scripps National Spelling Bee partners with Merriam-Webster,
and all 476,000 words in its unabridged dictionary are in play —
Akshita sees it as an opportunity to learn new things.

“Even when you’re studying spelling, you actually get access
to a lot of other topics,” she says. “I know that when I find a word
and I search it, I find another word. And that’s a really interesting
word, and I learn something new.”
Spellers also take advantage of spelling and vocabulary apps,
such as Word Club from Scripps and Spell Pundit, which was
designed by a former spelling bee contestant.

Have a good study partner
While study apps are helpful, super spellers don’t always go it
alone. In fact, there’s a cottage industry of former spelling bee
competitors who act as coaches.

But anyone can call out words during a study sessions.

Akshita’s younger sister is also getting into competitive spelling,
and the two quiz each other.

As it turns out, great spelling often runs in the family, and it’s
common on the spelling bee circuit to see siblings compete
against each other. In fact, both the 2015 and 2016 Scripps
National Spelling Bee co-champions were siblings of previous
winners. —Orrin Konheim n
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