10 Ways to be an Awesome Public School Mom

Are your kids starting school soon?  Mine already started this week!  If you are like me, the start of the school year is a bit of a let down.  After enjoying a fun summer of learning together, my kids suddenly take all the supplies we have so carefully gathered and disappear inside that place called "school".  Don't be fooled though!  Your kids need you to be involved during the school year, at least as much as they did during the summer.  As a teacher, always I knew that parents played an irreplaceable role in their students' academic development.  Ten years later, I am even more convinced that in most cases, parents make the difference in whether or not students are successful. Here are ten ways you can be an awesome public school parent (mom or dad!).  Why not try a few of these this year?

Kids in the Kitchen: Chicken 'n Science

Cooking is one of those hands-on activities that naturally employs all sorts of STEM  skills: science as you observe change, technology (especially if you are into gadgets like my husband!), engineering as you control change, and math as you measure and time.  Today, I am excited to join the Kids in the Kitchen Project hosted by Jennifer at Study at Home Mama.  I like to precook a whole chickens for future use, and my kids love helping me pick the meat. Here is how you can learn some great science while preparing your own chicken dinner!

How to Plan a Road Trip your Kids will Love: Tip 3

Children thrive on routine.  Traveling is no different.  Routine will calm frazzled nerves, and let you save your energy for the adventures! I knew we had really gotten comfortable with our traveling routine the night that we walked into our hotel room, and my three-year-old headed straight for the bathroom, undressed, and hopped in the tub.  Here are a few hints on how to establish a routine that leads to a road trip your kids will love. 

Pack by activity

Since  our children are too young to take responsibility for their things, my husband suggested this system. It works so well!

We have one overnight bag with all of our toiletries and pajamas.  We pack clothes by outfit in Ziploc storage bags, in the suitcases.  Each evening, when we pull over to sleep, we each choose one outfit for the next day and put it in the toiletry bag.  The overnight bag and electronics bag are the only ones that need to come in, unless we also grab the swim bag!  Giving the children control of what they wear and eat helps them feel more settled in the craziness of traveling. 

In the morning, dirty clothes go back in the clothing bag. The laundry bags stay in the vehicle unless we are washing the laundry.  Then it is taken to the laundry room, and everything repacked in the ziploc bags. Each child has their suitcase with just a jacket, stuffed animal, favorite book.  Well, occasionally other items mysteriously appear.  All electronics go in one bag, though.  That makes it easy to be sure everything is charged over night, out of the heat, and the site of thieves. We also have a bag just for car activities, a bag for food that I can reach, and often a second store of food and water in the back.  This system saves my husband and I stress, allowing everyone to have a better time. 

Rest Stop Routine

Whenever we pull over, every one is mandated to use the toilet.  Then, we spend a few minutes exploring or playing tag.  Either my husband or I quickly discard the trash and organizes snack, drinks, and activities so we will be comfortable on the next leg of our trip.

Organizing the Day

What works well depends both on how much ground you need to cover, and how old the children are.  We have found that our pre-schoolers do best when we wake them about fifteen minutes before pulling out and eat breakfast in the car.  They love those bagels!  If we have a long day of travel, we hold off on electronics until thirty minutes before our lunch stop.  On short days, we can splurge. We try to make lunch a long stop somewhere that the kids can really be active, like a park or restaurant with a play area.  After lunch, it's another hour with out electronics.  Usually they fall asleep.  When they wake up, snacks and electronics flow freely, until we pull in for the night.

Make it an Adventure, Make Car Time a Treat, and Establish Your Routine.  Those are my ideas for planning a great road trip.  What are you doing to make your next road trip special?

Related posts:
How to Plan a Road Trip your Kids will Love: Tip 1
How to Plan a Road Trip your Kids will Love: Tip 2

Pinterest boards
Traveling with Kids, organized by the Measured Mom
My personal Road Trip board

 The post,  Planning a Road Trip your Kids will Love: Establish Routine by Christy McGuire originally appeared on WisdomKnowledgeJoy@blogspot.com, now Thriving STEM.com.




Other Posts from Thriving STEM

How to Plan a Road Trip your Kids will Love: Tip 2

When it's time to hit the road, my kids are excited to strap themselves in.  It might be weird, but it has been a huge benefit as our family has needed to cover some serious miles over the past few years due to my husband's job.   Last week, I shared tip one, make road trips into an adventure. My second piece of road trip advice is this, Make car time a treat. Here is how we do it.

How to make Car Time a Treat

New books

I ordered a few new books for this summer's road trip. Over the past few years,  I have made a habit of buying a children's book about each state we visit. It has been a fun way to appreciate and remember where we have been.  The State Shape Books are great and have also enjoyed these state alphabet books .

New Car activities

Magnet board activities work well in the car.  At Christmas, a friend recommended doing a nativity from Made by Joel.  I colored and laminated it, and both kids really enjoyed it.

You can also plan simple crafts.  Last year we did this shamrock from Roots of Simplicity while traveling on St. Patrick's day.

I am working on prepping a few new activities for this summer's trip.  I will share as I finish.

Of course, extra screen time is a major reason for my children's love of road trips as well.  I Game Mom is the go to site for great Apps for kids, and we have our own stash of favorite videos.

Snacks

Although vacation is the time to splurge, too much extra sugar or red dye still makes us feel bad.  We carry reusable water bottles, and a stash of nuts, crackers, dried and fresh fruit.  My children look forward to these "car foods", and we make better meal choices along the way, because we can afford to eat earlier or to wait for a better choice.

If you are looking for more great car trip ideas check put this Pinterest board organized by Anna at The Measured Mom.  My personal road trip ideas are here.

If you are trying to plan a road trip that your kids will love, you will want to read yesterday's post explained how to make travel an adventure, and tomorrow's  about how you can establish routines that keep the stress out of travel, and the fun in.



The post How to Plan a Road Trip your Kids will Love:Tip 2originally appeared on WisdomKnowledgeJoy@blogspot.com now ThrivingSTEM.com

How to Plan a Road Trip your Kids will Love: Tip 1

Last week, my son told my husband that he wasn't very happy.  What was the problem?  He would like to go somewhere new.  We are not planning to move any time soon, but we do have a major road trip planned. Maybe that will settle his need to wander.  My children do look forward to road trips!  This week, I am sharing a few hints  for planning a road trip your kids will love.  

Plan a Road Trip Your Kids Will Love Tip 1: Make Traveling an Adventure

Carry a map

No expedition is complete without a map.  We have a Notebook Map of the United Statesthat we consult as we are getting on the road in the morning and through out the day. My kids love it and ask for updates.

 Plan to stop at major attractions

Today, I spent about ten minutes on our state's tourism page and found several cool places.  One of the best is four hours from home and only thirty minutes out of our way.  I am really looking forward to visiting that museum with my children!

Whenever we drive into a new state, we stop at the visitors center to pick up a state map.  Often the visitor's center will have information about attractions, clean restrooms, and coffee.  Sometimes they even have small museums.

Make unplanned  stops

Last summer we were driving through the Navajo Nation when we saw a home made sign that said "dinosaur fossils".  We made a split second decision to pull over, and spent thirty minutes taking the tour.  My kids are still telling people about that stop.  You probably can't afford the time to pull over every time there is an attraction, but stopping when there is something a family member is especially interested in is time well spent.  

How do you make traveling an adventure?



In tomorrow's post, we'll talk about how to make car time a treat!




This post originally appeared on WisdomKnowledgeJoy@blogspot.com, now ThrivingSTEM.com.




More Posts from Thriving STEM:

Holiday Cookies

We love making sugar cookies for any holiday, or in between holidays.  I use a recipe from the Mennonite Community Cookbook, edited by Mary Emma Showalter.   Few ingredients, no chilling, and perfect texture ever time make this one more treasure from my Mennonite friends.