We have some great tips that can help you begin a very successful school year.

Dear (put your name here),

Every time that a new school year starts I have a few hopes and fears for you as you continue to get older and grow more independent.

I hope:

• that you will be a leader among your friends.

• that you will stand for the high values that you have been taught.

• that you will live close to those values and when you falter that you will have the strength to communicate those challenges with those who can help you.

• that you will realize your potential, working hard to increase your talents and abilities.

• that you will recognize your talents and find subject areas that you are passionate about.

• that when you are pressured to do something that you know in your heart to be harmful, you will find the resolve to be your own person.

• that you will have a foundation of peace in your heart that can carry you through the difficulties that you will face.

• that you will be able to thrive in your social life, academics, and extracurricular activities.

I fear:

• that you will be a mindless follower of the crowd.

• that you will make decisions in the moment, that you will regret for a long time.

• that you will let your hormones and your emotions guide your decisions rather than actually making a thought-out choice.

• that you will put friends and popularity above learning and being who you are.

I know:

• that you have a unique combination of talents and abilities that know one else has.

• that you have the capacity to influence the people around you, in positive way, that no other person can.

• that there are those around you that will support you as you let those talents and abilities shine.

Sincerely,

Mat

The kids in my neighborhood start school today. Some parents write a back to school letter to their kids when they start each school year. I thought I would write a letter to all of you. May this school year bring you tons of fun and a lot of growth and learning.

Because we didn’t hit too much on the junior high age, I wanted to address these years and getting ready for them. So below I wanted to list just a few ideas for each year:
7th grade: this grade is often the hardest for many people, especially girls. Here we have just left elementary school and maybe had a great group of friends and maybe was even popular and then we go into a new school with lots of new people and our identity or perception of ourself often changes and sometimes it isn’t just our perception of ourselves but it is sometimes also our friends perception that changes.
We often meet a lot of new people this year and this can be so fun but also really stressful.  MY ADVICE:  talk with everyone at first.  Make yourself known by a lot of different groups of people.  Don’t be so stressed that you get lumped into a group you may not really want to be a part of.

8th grade:  This is probably for most junior high age girls the funnest.  You aren’t the youngest and you aren’t the oldest either.  So you can have friends in all different grades which makes it a lot of fun!  By now, you pretty much know who you are for the moment and are sure of what you like and who you like to spend most of your time with.  This is also a great year academically to get on the ball with practicing to NOT procrastinate.  Next year’s grades count and it’s good to get into a good habit of studying and doing your homework on time.

9th grade:  Socially, this is often a struggle for girls since a lot of the guys their age are not looking at the 8th and even 7th graders to hang out with.  So, have so much fun with your girl-friends and maybe meet guys from different schools this year.  This is a year that is full of decisions.  You need to choose what you might want to be a part of in high school like a certain club or team.  You’ll need to realize that not all your close friends will want to do the same things which often makes it tricky to decide.   But, join something and get involved, no matter what your friends want to or don’t want to do!  Study hard and keep working on your schoolwork – don’t get behind for even a day or two; it isn’t worth it!

Hope some of this info helps!

*Summer

Academics is not the only stressful part of school. The social aspect of going back to school can be incredibly stressful. In this podcast Mat and Summer are joined again by Jessica and they cover these parts of excelling in the social part of being a student:

1. Friends.
2. Boys.
3. Climbing the social ladder.
4. Why reinventing your appearance does not change who you are.
5. The importance of branching out, meeting new people, and experiencing new things.

I remember on the first few days of school, always being asked the question, “what did you do this summer?”  I hated that question because my answers to it always sounded so lame and uninteresting: “practice in the morning, friends and work.” 

So, I’m wondering about you guys and if you have had any better luck finding fun in the summer.  There is probably only about one week or so left before school starts and I wonder if you feel ready.  Not just for the academic part of school but also for the social part of school.  To me, it always seemed like the academic part just comes no matter what and can definitely be stressful but the social part of school was always a bigger deal.

Here are some tips as you get ready for school in the next few days or weeks:
*relax about the schoolwork
*stay organized
*prioritize your day and time
*know that everyone is nervous just like you
*plan for fun weekends with friends
*say hello to a new person every day

Just a few thoughts! Get ready- it’s coming
Summer