BACK To SCHOOL

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY ANN FIELD

Ready, Set, Go

Preparing children and teens
/=-3 for school transitions.

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JENNIFER FINER SECTION EDITOR

oing back to school is
hard enough for any
student. After all,
who wants to give up
those lazy days of summer?
Unfortunately, September, or
in many districts the end of Au-
gust, means trading in camp
clothes for school clothes. Sleep-
ing in is replaced with waking up
early, and doing homework takes
up time that used to be reserved
for watching television or being
outside.
While going back to school is
difficult for almost everyone, it
can be especially trying for stu-
dents going to school for the first
time, going to a new school or
heading off to college.
Nursery school, kindergarten,
first grade, sixth grade, ninth
grade and college are the biggest

G

"transition years" in a student's
educational career. Parents, ex-
perts and the students them-
selves talk about how to get
through these years.

Nursery School
For Cindy Cohen of West
Bloomfield, getting her son, Alex,
ready for nursery school meant
mentally preparing him to spend
a few hours without mom.
"There is really no way to ful-
ly prepare your son or daughter,"
said Mrs. Cohen, who sent both
her children to nursery school at
Congregation Shaarey Zedek.
'They don't realize what's going
on until you walk out the door
and they realize they are staying.
As a mother, you feel terrible
leaving a crying child. But once
they realize you're coming back,

they get used to being in school."
Shelley Fine, an assistant
teacher at Adat Shalom Nursery
School, said it's important to let
your child know Mom always
comes back. Some kids adjust
quickly. With others, it takes
time. The best thing a parent can
do is assure the child that every-
thing is going to be OK
Preschoolers, when they first
start in their new environment,
are especially preoccupied with
knowing where the bathrooms
are, Mrs. Fine said.
While each child's reaction to
school is different, Mrs. Cohen is
convinced a lot has to do with
birth order. Alex cried at first but
his younger sister Lainie couldn't
wait to go to school because her
brother went.
This month, Alex is starting
kindergarten. This time, he can't
wait for school to start.

Kindergarten
Sending Nicole Budaj off to
kindergarten was tough, accord-
ing to her mother Tammy.

"She was in a nurturing envi-
ronment at Temple Beth El
Nursery School," Mrs. Budaj said.
"And a lot of the neighborhood
kids went to nursery programs
in Farmington Hills, so she didn't
know a lot of her classmates."
Meeting her teacher and vis-
iting the school during kinder-
garten round up eased some of
Nicole's anxiety. Still, she was
scared.
"She had tears in her eyes on
the first day," her mother said.
"Her teacher made the transition
easier by being very nurturing,
giving the kids hugs when they
needed it."
The week before school, Nicole,
now almost 10, walked through
the building, Forest Elementary
School, twice. That also helped.
Dana Linkner, a kindergarten
teacher at West Bloomfield's
Green Elementary School, sug-
gests parents talk to their chil-
dren about the differences
between nursery school and
kindergarten.
"You can tell them it willbe

just like preschool, but they'll be
taking a bus. They should also
know there will be recess, but no
nap time," Mrs. Linkner said.
Most important, according to
Mrs. Linker, is that parents let
their kids experience the transi-
tion on day one.
"Let them take the bus and get
used to the routine," she said. "It's
hard to get them into the class-
room if a parent walks them in.
The transition is easier if parents
put their child on the bus begin-
ning on the first day."
Parents can prepare their chil-
dren academically for kinder-
garten too.
"We did a little over summer
but her nursery school teachers
said not to overdo it because if we
told her she needed to know cer-
tain things for school, it would
make her too anxious," Mrs. Bu-
daj said.
Their younger daughter,
Michelle, had an easier time
making the transition. Michelle,
now almost 7, looked forward to

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