10 Questions to Ask Your Kids Before Heading Back to School

With the start of school just a few more days away for us here in Florida and right around the corner for most of the rest of you in other parts of the country I wanted to share a super useful, fun thing you can do with your kids as you prepare to head into the new school year.

Each child is different and you may have a wide range of ages in your home, but no matter, it is always a great idea to prepare your kids for the new school year. To keep an open dialogue and ask some deeper questions. This not only helps keep the lines of communication open between you and your child, but it also allows you to get a glimpse into their heart and mind. Maybe they are super nervous for this new year. Maybe they are excited to get to play a new sport or participate in a new activity. Without asking a few questions, you will never know.

Here are 10 quick, easy questions we've used with our own kids to start talking about the new school year. You can pick just a couple every night and talk about them around the dinner table or as you go about the day. No matter where you choose to bring them up, the important thing is just doing it. Even if it doesn't feel natural or come easy, you will never regret taking the time to pour into your kids in this way. To establish at a young age that you are a trusted person that they can talk to about their feelings and whatever else they may have going on in their world.

10 Question to Ask Your Kids Before Heading Back to School:

1. What are you most excited about this school year?

2. Are you nervous about anything?

3. Who are you most excited to see again?

4. What is one goal you have for yourself this year?

5. What has been your high and low of the Summer?

6. Have you ever had to stand up to someone at school who was being mean to you? What did you say or do?

7. What do you hope to learn this school year?

8. Who has been your favorite teacher in school so far?

9. What should we pack for lunch on the first day of school?

10. What class(es) do you enjoy the most at school? i.e. music, art, P.E., Spanish, etc.

We took a few of these at a time and just discussed them around the dinner table. A few every night for the week leading up to school starting. It made for great conversations and started all of us thinking about school again. Our kids are social butterflies, so they are all excited to go back to school, but it is sweet to hear who they are excited to see, and I love getting to learn what classes they enjoy most and why.

It not only helps them to look forward to something in the new school year, but it also gives me a little glimpse into those things that my kids might really love, enjoy, and fuel them. Out of my three kids one loves art, the other music and Spanish, and the last one loves ELA (Reading, Writing and Language Arts). As a mama I enjoy that they all love something different.

Just like their personalities are so unique, all of our kids will be drawn to different things. They each have unique gifts and talents that make them who they are. As a mama, it is so sweet to watch them come into their own. I truly believe that ending the Summer by asking your kids these few simple questions (or think up some more of your own, no rules here) helps to set the tone for the new school year, prepare their little hearts and minds for going back to school, and subside any nerves that might be bubbling to the surface.

I pray that each of you enjoy your last little bits of Summer, soaking up beautiful memories with your kiddos. And I especially pray that everyone has a smooth transition back into the swing of school. I know it is tough, but you've got this!

Love you mama!