Getting Ready for School: Three Simple Habits to Practice Before the First Day

Sometime around the middle of July, summer begins to feel a little like Sunday night. The freedom is still there, the days are still long, and no one is setting an alarm for 6:00 a.m. just yet, but the feeling that Monday is coming slowly begins to creep in. As August approaches in Georgia, the back-to-school displays become harder to ignore, school emails begin arriving, and parents start mentally preparing for early mornings, packed lunches, carpool lines, and the return of saying “hurry up” in several different tones before 8:00 a.m.

Schools in Georgia open earlier than they do in many other states, and although we also finish the school year earlier, that somehow never feels like a fair trade. Ideally, school would end early and begin late, which would truly be living the life, but since no one has asked us to design the academic calendar, we have to work with the one we have.

The good news is that getting ready for school does not have to mean turning the final weeks of summer into a military-style routine. Parents do not need to begin assigning practice worksheets, organizing every drawer, or forcing teenagers to wake up at sunrise three weeks before school begins. Instead, we can use everyday summer moments to help middle schoolers and high schoolers practice a few small habits that will make the transition back to school feel easier.

These habits may appear simple, but they help students walk into a new academic year with greater confidence, stronger social skills, and a little more readiness for the situations they will face during the first few weeks.

Getting Ready for School Tip 1: Practice Arriving Five Minutes Early

During one of my leadership trainings, I learned that the first person to arrive at a gathering is often the person the host remembers most clearly. When someone arrives before the room becomes crowded and before the host is pulled in ten different directions, there is time for a genuine greeting and a short conversation. That early interaction creates an impression that is much harder to make once everyone else has arrived.

The same idea applies at school, especially during the first few weeks of a new academic year. Students are often so focused on avoiding tardiness that they aim to enter the classroom just before the bell rings, but arriving five minutes early can completely change the experience. Those five minutes create an opportunity to greet the teacher, settle into the room, organize materials, and begin class without feeling rushed.

A student who walks into class early might simply say, “Good morning,” ask the teacher how their summer was, or comment on something interesting in the classroom. The conversation does not have to be impressive or lengthy, because the goal is simply to begin building familiarity. Over time, these small interactions help students feel more comfortable approaching the teacher when they have a question, need clarification, or want additional support.

Reaching the classroom early can be particularly helpful for students who are shy or hesitant to speak in front of others. Starting a conversation with a teacher when the room is almost empty often feels much easier than raising a hand after twenty-five students have arrived. It also allows the teacher to know the student as an individual before the class becomes busy.

How Parents Can Practice Arriving Early at Home

During the remaining weeks of summer, parents can help children practice this habit by aiming to arrive five minutes early for appointments, practices, camps, family gatherings, or outings with friends. The goal is not to create anxiety around the clock or make lateness feel like a moral failure. The goal is to help children experience how different it feels to walk into a place calmly instead of rushing through the door feeling flustered and already behind.

When school begins, those five minutes can become a quiet advantage. They give students time to feel grounded, connect with their teachers, and start building the relationships that may support them throughout the year.

Back-to-School Tip 2: Practice Smiling in Social Settings

Imagine that you arrive at a party with your family and do not know anyone in the room. As you look around for someone to approach, are you more likely to move toward the person who appears annoyed and closed off, or the person who looks relaxed and is smiling?

We make this choice all the time without consciously thinking about it. When two checkout counters are available at the grocery store, we often choose the cashier who appears warm and approachable. When we walk into a school event, meeting, or community gathering, our eyes naturally search for someone whose expression makes us feel welcome.

There is something about a smile that draws people toward us, and that makes it a valuable card for young people to carry in their back pockets when they return to school. A smile sends a message before a single word is spoken. It can communicate openness, friendliness, and confidence, even when the person smiling is feeling uncertain inside.

This is especially important at the beginning of the school year, when many students are quietly wondering where they will sit, who will be in their classes, whether their friendships have changed, and how they will find their place. Even students who appear confident may be carrying some nervousness about walking into a new classroom or approaching unfamiliar classmates.

How Parents Can Encourage Approachable Body Language

Parents can help children practice this skill during ordinary summer outings without turning it into a forced performance. When you walk into a restaurant, attend a community event, visit relatives, or stand in line at a store, encourage your child to look up, make brief eye contact, and smile at the person helping them. You might also notice together how people respond differently when someone greets them with a warm expression.

This does not mean children need to smile constantly or pretend to feel happy when they are not. It simply means helping them become aware of the signals they send through their body language. A student may genuinely want to make friends while unintentionally appearing uninterested because they are looking at the floor, crossing their arms, or hiding behind their phone.

When children understand that a smile can make it easier for someone else to approach them, they gain a practical tool for navigating the social uncertainty of a new school year. They are no longer waiting helplessly for someone else to begin the conversation, because they are already communicating that they are open to connection.

Back-to-School Tip 3: Become Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable

In our leadership program, I often tell students that they must learn to become comfortable with being uncomfortable, especially when we begin working on public speaking and stage presence.

There is something powerful about awareness, because awareness allows us to prepare. When students understand that the first few days of school may feel awkward, they are less likely to interpret that discomfort as evidence that something is wrong. They can recognize it as a normal part of entering a new environment, meeting new teachers, navigating changing friendships, and adjusting to a different routine.

In many ways, confidence is the belief that even if we do not know exactly what will happen, we can handle what comes next. That belief grows when children have regular opportunities to solve small problems without a parent immediately stepping in.

A Simple Confidence-Building Activity to Try

One practical activity is to give your child a small independent mission during a familiar outing. The next time you visit a grocery store, bookstore, library, or shopping center, ask your child to locate a specific item, approach an employee if they cannot find it, and complete the interaction without your assistance. You can stay nearby, but allow them to decide whom to approach, what to say, and how to respond if the first person cannot help.

Before they begin, acknowledge that the activity may feel uncomfortable. You might tell them that the goal is not to perform perfectly or avoid awkwardness, because the goal is to practice moving forward even while feeling uncertain. Afterwards, ask what felt difficult, what they did when they were unsure, and what they would do differently the next time.

For older students, the activity can become more challenging. They might call a business to ask about its hours, speak to the receptionist at an appointment, return an item to a store, order for the family at a restaurant, or ask a librarian for help locating a resource. These situations are small enough to be safe, but real enough to require initiative.

The important part is for the parent to resist rescuing too quickly. When we answer every question, speak to every adult, and solve every moment of confusion, children may remain comfortable, but they do not get to experience their own competence. By allowing them to struggle briefly and work through the situation, we give them evidence that they can manage discomfort.

That evidence will matter when they need to introduce themselves to a teacher, ask for help in a difficult class, join a new club, sit with unfamiliar students, or recover after making a mistake. They may still feel nervous, but nervousness no longer has to decide what they do.

A Gentler Way to Prepare for the New School Year

Getting ready for school is often associated with buying supplies, resetting sleep schedules, reviewing academic material, and completing a long list of forms. Those tasks are important, but they are not the only preparation our children need.

Middle schoolers and high schoolers are also preparing to walk into rooms where they may not know anyone, build relationships with new teachers, manage unfamiliar expectations, and speak up when they need support. A new backpack may help them carry their books, but habits such as arriving early, appearing approachable, and moving through discomfort will help them carry themselves.

The final weeks of summer give families a valuable opportunity to practice these skills without adding another formal lesson to the calendar. Arrive five minutes early when you go somewhere together, encourage your child to notice the difference a smile makes, and allow them to handle one small uncomfortable interaction without stepping in.

None of these activities will make the first day of school completely effortless, and that is not the goal. The goal is to help children enter the new year knowing that they have a few tools they can use when a situation feels unfamiliar. When students know how to begin a conversation, connect with another person, and take action despite discomfort, school begins to feel less like something that is happening to them and more like a place they are prepared to navigate.