The beginning of a new school year means change is in the air.  There are many different types of change that happen around the beginning of the school year. 

The new school year is quickly approaching and for many families that spells welcome relief from the question of what to do with their school- aged children for hours each day.  Summer camps, church camps, and summer day care fill that gap but often parents must take time from work during the summer simply because they do not
have the necessary resources to care for their children when school is out.  The beginning of the school year means that parents will not have to worry about where to keep their children during the average work day.

For other families, the approaching school year will mean different issues.  Summer is a time of change.  If given a choice, most people who must move do so during the summer break from school.  This means that some families will be in new school districts when school opens.  This can mean apprehension for children faced with being the “new kid” in school.  Even without a change of district there is often the change from elementary school to middle school, or middle to high school. 

These may not seem like significant changes for an adult, but children tend to have both excitement and dread associated with the beginning of a new school year.  Even if the child will be going to the same school that they left at the end of the previous school year, the child will be going to a new class, and a new teacher.  There will be new subjects, new students, and a new dynamic between students. 

Yet another type of change that often occurs during the approach of the opening of school happens when parents decide to keep their children out of the traditional school setting and place those children in a homeschool
situation.  This can be one of the most stressful of changes that occur surrounding new school years. 

The reason that deciding to homeschool can be a difficult change is not always obvious from the outside looking in.  First, the student may believe that they are losing friendships with their traditional school classmates.  This loss of friends, even if it is just a perceived loss, can cause a student a great deal of stress.

Second, parents may have a bit of apprehension about bringing their children home and being responsible for their children’seducation.  Questions about what curriculum to choose, how to work within the framework of the laws regarding attendance of school, and even questions about whether homeschooling is the right choice
will make even the most resolute parent wonder if they are doing the right thing by bringing their child home to school.

Finally, many people who decide to bring their children home to school may not realize that homeschooling is not just an education choice, but a lifestyle.  For many homeschool families there is very little distinction between what is life and what is school.  Because parents and children will be together the vast majority of the day, education does not necessarily end at 3:00p.m.  This change may be the most difficult.

All of these changes associated with the new school year, whether those changes are just a grade level within a school, changing schools all together, changing districts, or changing the method of education from a traditional model to an alternate model, can be very stressful on children as well as parents. 

The easiest way to overcome these changes and the stress they induce is to plan ahead.  Make sure
that children are well informed as to what the changes mean for them.   Review the changes, plan for the changes, and look forward to the changes with anticipation, not apprehension.  Allow the child input into the situation that will induce change, as much as is possible, and as much as is appropriate for the age of the child. 

 Change can be terrifying, and very idea of change makes many people resistant.  Planning a course of action and ensuring that each member of the family knows how the change will impact them often makes
start of school year changes less stressful.  After all, change doesn’t have to be bad; it can be exciting, especially
if plans  are made to minimize the negative effects.