School is back in session and it might be the ultimate bittersweet moment for both you and your kids. You miss them but at the same time are happy for them to be in school. They are excited to see their friends but sad to be back in school.

As the kids start getting into the swing of going to school, it can be easy to catch those school time blues. Whether it’s the monotony of going to school every day, drama with friends and classmates, or just having a hard time with school work, school time blues come in many shapes and sizes.

We’ve come up with some fun ways to push back against those hard times caused by school and help ease those school time blues!

Go Out For a Fun Adventure

Especially if your child is struggling with the monotony of school, going on a fun and exciting adventure could be just the thing they need. This should be something your child will definitely enjoy and give them both a physical and mental break from school.

A fun adventure could include going camping as a family for the weekend, taking a short trip out of town, or do something unique in your area, like an Escape the Room or a VR arcade. Talk to your kid about what they would want to do and plan out something exciting for them.

Check out the Pioneer Perks page to see what offers you could use to plan out a stellar time for your children. We offer things like discounted tickets to Wahooz and Roaring Springs for members, so check back regularly to see what perks you can take advantage of.

Plan Out Small Surprises Regularly

Anything to break up the day to day of school can make your child’s day. Whether it’s going out to ice cream after school one day, packing a surprise candy bar in their lunch, or slipping them a note telling them how proud you are, little surprises can really help a struggling kid.

Understandably, your life gets busy too. To prevent forgetting to give the occasional surprise or gift, set up a reminder system to keep you on track. Try to also mix up the surprises you give so each one feels special and unique.

Encourage Them to Blow Off Steam

Children and young adults can deal with some pretty stressful stuff at school. Bullies, drama, grades, and friendships can put some serious strain on their emotions. As we grow older, we learn healthy ways to manage our emotions and blow of steam, but kids and teens might not. Some turn to violence, others hold it in, but neither method is healthy.

Work with your child to find productive and healthy ways to blow off steam and learn to control their emotions. That way, if they had a hard day at school, they have a plan on how to relax and recover. Whether it’s through exercise, crafts, art, spending time with friends, or even playing video games, encourage your child to blow off steam when they need it.

Give Them One on One Attention

It’s easy to be overlooked in a school with larger class sizes, especially if your kid is shy. They might feel lost or uncared for in the class, which means they might need some extra attention from others. Especially if you have a large family or have a busy life.

Take them out to dinner, do an activity one on one with them, and just spend some quality time. That this opportunity to talk about school, their friends, how they feel and more! If you have some Rewards! points saved up, you could even take them out without dipping into your budget by getting a gift card to a fun place to eat!

Set Goals to Work Towards

One reason a child might be unhappy about going to school is they might feel like there is no goal or purpose; that they are aimless and simply going because they have to. To help establish motivation for going to school, make goals with them that push them to work hard but are also realistic.Then be sure to have a fair reward to go with that goal.

There is no one perfect goal for all kids. You should analyze your child’s strengths and weaknesses and look for where they can grow at school. This could be improving grades in a specific subject, having a better attitude, doing well on a test or just doing something nice for a classmate.

The key to setting a successful goal is to have a conversation with your child and get them on board with it. If they aren’t willing to work on themselves, the goal will fail. To help with that, consider having a reasonable reward to accompany the goal. This can help get a kid motivated with a clear goal and reward system, but as you continue this process, they might actually notice results from their hard work and not focus as much on the reward part.

If any part of your reward includes money, why not open a Super Star Youth Savings account for your child? That way, they can also learn the value of saving money while working on improving themselves at school!

Open a Super Star Youth Savings Account!