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Each year I have been at PCS, I have welcomed parents and students back to school after the Labour Day weekend. It is great to begin the new year journey as I see new backpacks, shoes, school supplies and newly scrubbed or purchased lunch containers.

Since it has been over 12 years since my youngest son packed a lunch for high school (OK his mom packed it), I realized that I probably didn’t know all the up-to-date stuff kids could bring to school, or do. before and after school hours. This thought was extended when I read a book entitled How to Walk into Church, by Tony Payne. It is a great read about being prepared to go to church. My mind did that drifting thing, as I contemplated changing the title to How to Walk into School. If I wrote that book it would have at least two similar chapters as Payne’s book - “Before I Walk into School” and “After I Walk into School”.

A synopsis of the first chapter would begin the night before a school day. A great title would also be “Tomorrow Starts Tonight”.  Here I would discuss how to prepare for the next day by having lunches premade and packed, preferably by the student. You can make it fun or drudgery by your attitude. Hold it! Maybe the first chapter should be about parental attitude. Yes, that’s right!  Parents set the tone by choosing how this is approached. I digress.  Here are some other items to consider the night before:

• Do the students know what is happening at school and pack their backpack appropriately?
• Have you done a weather check so that your child can lay out their clothes now, rather than searching for the shirt that happens to be in the wash, therefore causing the day to become unglued because the child needs to choose a new shirt?
• Do they need their gym equipment, or any work or materials needed? Permission forms signed or notes sent to the teacher? Completed homework? Instruments for music? Agendas?
• Before bed, have you led your child in prayer for tomorrow regarding attitude, work ethic, and modelling Christ to their friends?
• If there are individuals who are causing some grief, have you been able to pray for them and their struggles and how your child can show Christ to them? (1 Cor 5:16 – “do all to the Glory of God” should be a poster in their room)
• Has a reasonable bed time been set?
• Have you set the alarm to an appropriate time so that you can arrive at school prior to the morning bell? Ok, maybe that was harsh, but the number of parents who model the consistently late attitude is increasing.Hence the need for this whole blog and helping you to prepare. Guess what? If you are also going off to work, everything that I have mentioned applies to you as well.
• You can have your child pick their breakfast choice and have that ready to go as well.

 Children thrive on routine. Get at it, keep at it, and you will be amazed at how much life settles down.

In a future post, I’ll write my next chapter about what happens after school closes for the day.

By the way, If you would like to have a copy of Thomas Payne’s book (easy read, only 64 pages) please send me an email and I will personally gift one to you.