A Parent’s Guide: Back to School in the New “Normal”

Goodbye summer break! August has arrived and we are officially in back-to-school season.

I’m sure by now you’ve been inundated with back-to-school shopping guides. Maybe you’ve indulged in some back-to-school retail therapy yourself. 

Over here, we’re going to be talking back-to-school in the new “normal”, as in returning to school post lockdown, but still during COVID. (Sorry, no shopping guides here!)

I think a lot of us felt like this summer was almost normal. Pre-pandemic normal. People were booking vacations, airlines getting busy, restaurants opening up at full capacity. But then, news of the Delta variant came. And now, it almost feels like a snap back into reality. 

As parents, I think many of us are brought back into this difficult spot in Spring of last year. Although much has changed, the chaos of the last school year was challenging, to say the least.

Perhaps your child is returning to school in person this school year, or you’re already set in stone with an online school or homeschool. Things may not be as severe as they were in the height of the pandemic, but the uncertainty of COVID is likely causing anxiety amongst parents as our children return to school. 

The reality is, school this year is most likely not going to look “normal” like the normal we knew pre-pandemic. And that’s ok. 

After surviving a year like 2020, let’s be hopeful and embrace the good things we can expect for this new school year. For some of us it’s the opportunity for our kids to finally return to school in-person, for others it’s the opportunity for a parent to be at home and homeschool with your child. 

Back-to-school in this new “normal” is going to look different for every family. So what’s something we can do as parents to mentally prepare? 

Pray for peace.

As parents, our worry load can get heavy. If you’re feeling anxious about this school year, hand it over to God. 

Scripture says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." Philippians 4:6.

Our kids are God’s kids. We can either lean into our doubts and worries, or we can hand those fears over to the Lord and choose to lean into Him. 

Check your expectations at the door.

“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” Proverbs 16:9

As a parent, I’ve pictured myself going back-to-school shopping with my kids and taking their first day of ___ grade photos at the front door. Basically, doing all the things. 

I also think about how the pandemic derailed a lot of the expectations that we’ve held for our children. Canceled graduation ceremonies, social distancing, and many other restrictions. 

There can be a lot of disappointment when our expectations are crushed, especially when it happens for the people we love, our kids. 

God has plans too. And His plans are good. Whether we see it or not, He has a plan for us. He has a plan for our children. 

I can have a lofty list of expectations for my child to have the best year ever, but it’s probably not going to pan out the way I imagined. Pandemic or not, plans change, things happen, and that’s just life. 

The key thing to remember here is, God has a plan. Even if your plan changes, God’s plan is still in place, and that is definitely a plan we want to be a part of.

Find strength in your resilience.

Living in a world that’s surviving the adversities of a pandemic, how do we switch our mentality from surviving to thriving? How about our kids?

We’ve seen reports of mental health issues among minors shoot through the roof in the last year. (See our post on safeguarding your child’s mental health). Just as children faced their own set of challenges in school last year, there will be a new set of challenges for them this school year.

Take a look at the obstacles you and your family have faced this past year. In doing that, take inventory of the ones that your children have overcome and things that you have overcome as a parent. 

Be encouraged that God created us to grow with our challenges. Despite adversity and hardship, there is strength we can receive from the Lord. 

“But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31

Let’s dig into the joy that can be found in resiliency-- and help our kids to do the same. 

As we head into the 2021-2022 school year, it’s time to turn a new leaf. Pray for peace, check your expectations at the door, and find encouragement and strength in your resilience.