Back to class tasks

Melissa Schorr

Thursday, Aug. 21, 1997 | 10:36 a.m.

"Will I have any friends?" the boy worries, lying awake in bed until the wee hours, as the clock quickly approaches the dreaded First Day of School.

"Will my teacher like me?" he wonders.

"Will I have too much homework?"

On his desk sits all the requisite merchandise -- the "Star Wars"-themed zip-up binder and matching folder that shouts "Freeze You Rebel Scum," a Nickelodeon green slime pencil holder, and even a 4-1-1 Student Planner.

The pencils are carefully sharpened, the lunch bag carefully packed, and the first day's wardrobe is laid out on the chair.

But there are still pressing concerns -- will his "Lost World: Jurassic Park" book bag be the object of jealous admiration or deep ridicule?

Did his mother got him the wrong box of Crayolas -- the 24-pack instead of the 64 -- and if so, will he be able to complete his coloring assignment correctly?

Down the hall, his older sister has worries of her own.

Will she find no one to sit with at lunch time and have to wander aimlessly around the cafeteria for the entire 40 minutes?

Are her clothes too bright, too pastel, too dowdy, or just too anything?

Will she have to take showers for gym class and disrobe in front of all her peers?

Back they go

Thousands of worrywarts make their way back Monday for the start of the new semester. Not only will many area children be dealing with typical first day stress, but many will be thrust into unique situations.

Students at five new elementary schools soon to open will be borrowing campuses for the afternoon shift, until their own buildings are completed.

Students at Keller Middle School will be stalled completely, returning after most of their peers on September 22, and ending their year a month late.

Freshmen and sophomores at Mojave and Palo Verde, two brand new high schools, will roam the initiated halls for the first time, without any fear of senior hazing, but also with an absence of school tradition.

And then, there are the students to whom the phrase "back-to-school" has less meaning: students who are on a year-round schedule and take many short breaks throughout the year.

Students on year-round schedules, in place at about one-third of the district's schools, must find a way to return from this short break refreshed and ready to tackle a new level.

As one middle school counselor -- asked what she did on her summer break -- replies: "You mean yesterday?"

Here then, are some suggestions from both educators and fellow parents on how to make the transition as smooth as possible -- or at least less manic -- on Monday.

Be prepared

Read the "Back to School Reporter" an eight-page newsletter sent out by the school district with frequently asked questions. "It's the best single document for anyone new to the community," says Ray Willis, spokesman for the Clark County School District.

Peggy Moore, principal of Gibson Elementary School, reminds parents that most schools offer an "open house" either the first week, or in early September. "Take advantage of the activities that the school has to offer," she recommends. "If parents can find time to attend these functions, it would alleviate concerns."

On the home front, parents like Denise Brodsky, a mother of three and active PTA member, treats the upcoming day with a five-point plan worthy of a five- star general. She itemizes her Sunday night preparation:

"Make sure they get a good night's rest, get our lunches together, and shower schedules, lay our clothes out so there's not that chaos in the morning, make sure that our backpacks are waiting to go, make sure we know the bus number -- make sure you know all the details."

Jane Kadoich, director of the district's guidance program, goes one step further. She actually marched her second-grader, Jeremy, 7, down to Gray Elementary School for a thorough reconnaissance mission.

"The fear is of the unknown," she explains. " The comfort zone is important for the elementary age. So, I went down to see his class roster to see where he will be sitting. We walked down to the classroom, so he could see where the room is, and we walked in the playground so he can remember where he lines up."

Return to the daily grind

"Start getting them back in a regime," advises Willis. "They should have been reading during the break under parental supervision, so coming back should not be traumatic."

Adds Kadoich: "Get back on a schedule and do it ahead of time. Begin establishing the routine in the home, setting a bed time, meal time. My own children are just going to die when we come down on them tonight," she adds with a laugh. "They need to go to bed early."

Veteran teacher John Snyder, a computer science teacher at Advance Technologies Academy, focuses on the mind as well as the body. Snyder has been prepping his two sons, Matthew and Mark, to "get them back into the cerebral mode. My fifth-grader and I have been playing geography games," he explains, "while my second-grader and I are playing planet games."

Snyder quizzes the two Doris French Elementary School students with questions like, "How would you get from Pierre to Topeka?" or "Which planet is the red one?"

"I think they will have less of a culture shock if they are thinking those kinds of things," he says.

And while Mark finds the approaching red-letter day "weird" and Matthew finds it "too soon," Snyder explains: "Officially, they all say, 'Oh no, I don't want to go,' but I think they like it -- they just wouldn't admit it."

Families also have a way of marking the end of the summer with a last hurrah.

"Some go to Wet & Wild for the last time, some do barbecues," says Kadoich. "We'll do a family dinner that Sunday with friends and family."

The shopping expedition

If a new school year has come to mean a pilgrimage to the Galleria and a subsequent credit card bill equal to a small nation's gross national product, some parents say it doesn't have to be so.

Brodsky lets her older children contribute to the payment for their wardrobe. "I think it's important that they contribute, it gives them a feel of ownership, I give them a choice -- as long as we can agree."

Not everything has to be bought brand new, she adds. "My oldest son is using the same backpack as before -- we got a sturdy one, with leather on the bottom from a sporting goods store. My daughter's always had the same one since kindergarten. This year, I said, 'Why don't we put patches on it, decorate it?' There's ways of stretching your supplies."

Others only have to stock up on one outfit: the school uniform, now used (but not mandatory) at a dozen elementary schools. But don't panic if they're not ready by the first day, advises Willis. "We recognize that's not always possible."

Also make sure your child's garb is within the boundaries of the dress code, so they aren't sent home with a note from the schoolyard. According to Willis, that means "shoes with soles, shirts longer than belt level and bottoms as long as fingertip level -- in other words, no tube tops or micro minis. Make sure all clothing is either hemmed or rolled cuffs -- no rips.

As to whether Clark County teachers will be similarly whipped into models of decorum? That issue is still up for debate at future board meetings.

On the supply side: "Hold off before buying $30 worth of Trapper Keepers," advises sixth-grade English teacher Jessica Super. "Just bring the basics. The teacher will usually assign what materials you'll need and give you a weekend to get them."

Attitude check

Remember, there may be no second acts in American lives, but every child does get a fresh semester.

"I like to build the excitement of a new year," says Brodsky. "There's new beginnings, new friends, all kinds of new experiences that they are going to embark on. We all have a fear of the unknown. You can bring to light that's not a bad thing, that it can be an exciting thing."

Says Kadoich: "I like to start in the cheerleader mode. I visualize for them, 'I can see that you're going to have a great time, you're going to see new kids, meet old friends.' "

She also recommends that parents keep any personal anxieties to themselves, warning that kids can feed off any negativity they sense. Although she knows her son, Kai, 13, is rumored to have landed a "hard" eighth-grade math teacher this year, she keeps her upbeat manner, telling him: "You're so fortune to have such a great math teacher."

But they need to find out for themselves. Often, she says, the one teacher that a student worries about all summer can turn out to be their all-time favorite.

But above all -- R-E-L-A-X.

As Super reminds: "Students should know that the teachers are up the whole night before too -- we're just as nervous and excited as they are."

archive