September is here and with it comes the exciting start of a new school year. But after a long, carefree summer, getting back into the school routine can feel like a big change. How can you make sure your child is ready to tackle their first day with confidence and enthusiasm? By following these fun and practical tips, you can turn the back-to-school transition into an exciting and positive experience for the whole family!

Create an Awesome Study Zone

Help your child design a personalized study space where they can focus and feel comfortable. Let them pick out some fun accessories like colorful organizers, inspiring posters, or even a cool desk lamp. The more they help create the space, the more excited they’ll be to use it. It’s a simple but effective way to get them into the mindset for learning!

Set Goals—And Make Them Exciting!

Instead of just focusing on grades, sit down together and brainstorm some fun academic or personal goals for the school year. It could be learning a new skill, mastering a subject, or even joining a new club. Write them down on a goal board and celebrate progress throughout the year! Goals help keep kids motivated, but making them collaborative and celebratory will keep the excitement going long after school starts.

Go on a Back-to-School Shopping Adventure

Who doesn’t love shopping for fresh supplies? Turn the annual back-to-school shopping trip into an adventure by allowing your child to pick out items that reflect their style. Whether it's a new backpack, colorful notebooks, or personalized pencils, giving them some say in their supplies adds excitement and a sense of ownership over the upcoming year.

Create a Morning Routine Countdown

Getting out the door in time for school can be hectic. Make it easier by practicing your morning routine a few days before school starts. Turn it into a game by setting a timer and seeing how quickly they can get dressed, eat breakfast, and gather their supplies. Kids love a challenge, and this will help them learn how to manage their time in a fun way!

Highlight the Excitement of a New School Year

While school can feel like a big change, it’s also a time for new opportunities and experiences. Talk to your child about all the exciting things they can look forward to: making new friends, learning interesting topics, or joining after-school activities. By focusing on the positive aspects, you can help shift any nervousness into anticipation for the adventure ahead.

Kick Off the School Year with a Family Tradition

Celebrate the start of school with a fun family tradition that your child will look forward to every year. Whether it’s a special back-to-school dinner, an ice cream outing, or a movie night, creating a joyful event around the new school year helps them feel that it’s a special and exciting time. Traditions like this can turn the focus from nerves to excitement.

Over the past week, I really noticed how ‘far away’ Athens feels from the rest of Greece. Of course, we often hear people outside the capital say they could never live in Athens, not with the crowds, the noise, the traffic, the chaos. And it seems the further away you get from the city, the more dramatic is this response. My answer has always been (usually spoken to myself), ‘sure, but Athens is like a quiet country town compared to Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Sydney...’

After hopping around Crete over the past days, I understand this more clearly. In places like Agios Nikolaos, Elounda, in the villages around Chania – Athens seems like a world away. And the pace of life in these small, ‘authentic’ Greek locales does make Athens seems like a chaotic metropolis. There are days in these rural zones where, I’m sure, not much happens. And where not much has changed in generations.

I suppose the truth is that everything is relative – relative to where you’ve just come from and relative to where your life’s experience has decided is the ‘comparison’.

The same goes for Greece’s beaches. Some of us have unwittingly become acclimatized to the beauty around us – so much so, that I have often found myself saying ‘oh look, those tourists think that (tiny, average) beach is wonderful – how unfortunate’. But really, relative to the colder, wetter, less ‘beachy’ places they’ve come from, those (tiny, average) beaches are a little piece of paradise for many people. And why shouldn’t they be!

So I am really trying to avoid this ‘relativity trap’ – the trap of thinking ‘gosh, Athens is so loud and busy’, after returning from an idyllic getaway - and instead remembering why I moved to this ‘energetic and alive’ city.

That, and also thinking about where I might go next time…

Until next week,

Jack

In this weekly space, keep up with ‘Jack’ as he navigates daily life in Athens… Anecdotes, stories, hits & misses, the good, the bad and, well, the rest…

You'll taste that the bread here is homemade! Vegetarians also have enough to choose from. Very pleasant is the fact that the waiters are kind.

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