As time goes by, it feels like the years keep getting shorter and shorter…and, just like that for many parents and caregivers, it’s once again time for all the back-to-school preparations. Well, there IS a scientific reason why time seems to just fly by! For our minds and bodies, time IS truly relative. And as the months and years pass, it is processed as a percentage of our total lives! Basically, when you’re five years old, it feels like FOREVER before your birthday or Christmas rolls around each year – because one year represents ONE-FIFTH of your entire existence. And, when you’re 40 (or celebrating some anniversary of 39!), one year is only 1/40th of your lifetime.
So, yes, it may seem hard to believe the kiddos will be heading back to school – whether their first trip to Kindergarten, or their next year of college – in just a few short weeks. (Don’t EVEN get us started on “week percentages”…too much math and too depressing after a certain age! LOL) But, like it or not, and even though it certainly FEELS like summer will never end, NOW is the time to get busy on that back-to-school “To-Do” list.
And while those supply shopping lists change and evolve as a child passes through the different school levels, some things remain a constant from preschool to grad school. Obviously, certain items will always be school supply requirements, such as writing instruments (be it crayons, jumbo pencils or sophisticated pens), some sort of means to carry those school supplies (usually spanning the gamut from Hello, Kitty backpacks or leather briefcases or all-terrain backpacks). Usually organizational and note-taking supplies – e.g. notebooks, file folders, tablets, laptops, etc. – end up on that shopping list, too.
Of course, those supply requirements tend to become more involved, AND COSTLY, as the years progress! Chances are, the most expensive items you’ll have to get when sending your little one off to Kindergarten will be a nap mat and blankie, maybe along with a lunch box. Your college-bound kiddo will need a LOT more…especially if that upperclassman will be setting up their first apartment away from dorm life!
But, one of the most important back-to-school preparations isn’t something you can just to run the neighborhood store to check off your list: Back-to-school health exams! And we’re not just talking those quick athletic check-ins for a child who will be participating in school sports. EVERY child should have a complete medical check-up – including any school-required vaccinations – before the start of a new school year. And, an increasing number of schools now REQUIRE this exam! But, wait, THERE’S MORE!
Your pediatrician or family care physician will not be the only medical professionals on that “To-Visit” list. Don’t forget an eye exam and dental check-up! Think about it…no child will be able to learn and perform to their best abilities, if they cannot see properly or suffering from tooth pain. And, honestly, COULD YOU?!? So, why should our young scholars? Instead, book those appointments NOW…so you and your kids don’t face a new school year already “behind the curve!”