School starts in just 3 weeks for many children here in Georgia. Can you believe it? Did you make your children some promises when school let out for the summer that have not been fulfilled? Even if school starts after Labor Day where you live, now’s the time to schedule these things to do before summer ends.
Here are 5 Things to Do Before Summer Ends
Go Local
Be a tourist in your hometown. What are the local attractions, historical sights, museums, recreation centers in your hometown? Have you visited all of them? In these last few weeks of summer schedule time to visit one or more of them. Then when you have out of town visitors you can honestly point them to one or more of these attractions.
Finish Summer Homework
If you have children, there may also be some school requirements to complete before summer ends and they go back to school.
Even if they had no summer homework, it’s a good idea to review math facts with your children. Get some flash cards and review the addition and subtraction facts and if they are old enough, the multiplication tables.
Does your child’s school offer a foreign language? Would you like to learn it, too? Help them brush up on the vocabulary. Download an app like Babbel or the Rossetta Stone and learn along with your children. You can have a little fun with this and decide to speak that language in the morning or at dinner.
Back to School Shopping
Take advantage of the sales that are going on now and buy your back-to-school supplies but before you head to the stores, shop from your home.
Take an inventory of the things you already have. You may be surprised to find that you have plenty of markers, a calculator, and that the binders are in good enough condition to use again this year.
Check the backpacks to see if they are also in good enough condition to use again this school year. If they are, give them a good cleaning. If they are not, toss them. You may have cleaned them when the children brought them home for the summer but it’s a good idea to give them another cleaning.
What about the lunch boxes? Check out the food holders at The Container Store. They have wonderful, divided containers and reusable bags for sandwiches, chips, or any other food your child may want to take to school.
Back to School Routines
Before summer ends ease your children back into their bedtime and wake time routines. Summer may have been a wonderful, relaxed time with everyone sleeping in and staying up late from time to time. With school days on the horizon, it’s time to return to a schedule.
If your children take the bus to school, find out what time the bus is scheduled to arrive at your stop. Figure out how long it takes to get to the bus stop from your house to find out what time your children need to leave the house.
Do you drive your children to school?
Then, think about their morning routine. Is it easy for them to wake up, get washed, get dressed, and have breakfast? Do they need a little extra time in the morning? You know best.
Once you know what time your children must be up in the morning, you can figure out what time they need to start their evening routine and have lights out, so they get enough sleep.
Ease your children into their back-to-school routine by starting their evening routine earlier and earlier over the course of a couple of weeks.
Also, wake them up a little earlier each day.
Changing their bedtime and wake times in small increments will be easier for your children and for you. No one likes big changes. Small changes over a period of time are much easier to swallow.
Finish a Project
Did you start a project at the beginning of summer telling yourself that you wanted to finish it before summer ends?
Now is the time.
Assess what you need to do to complete this project.
Are there any supplies to purchase?
Maybe you must hire a little help?
Once you have figured out the remaining steps to take, schedule time to execute the steps in your calendar before summer ends. Be sure to honor that time with yourself as you would an appointment with someone else.
Would it help you to have an accountability partner? Jonda Beattie and I run a clutter support group called: Clear Space for You. We start new groups with people working on new projects the first of every month.
Diane N. Quintana is a Certified Professional Organizer® ,a Certified Professional Organizer in Chronic Disorganization®, Master Trainer and owner of DNQ Solutions, LLC and co-owner of Release●Repurpose●Reorganize, LLC based in Atlanta, Georgia.
These are all great suggestions! I was already planning to head to a museum this week and the school supply list is looming on my to-dos!
Thank you, Jana
Ah, I can’t even think about back to school yeet! Here in CT our kids only get out the third week of June, and it feels so far away to think about school. BUT, I know this is coming quickly, and for much of the country, it is only a couple of weeks away.
At the end of summer, I say do whatever makes you feel better about what’s coming up in the fall. Whether that be finishing homework, finishing projects, getting the garage in order, reading ahead a bit for an upcoming class, whatever.
It’s also about squeaking out a bit more fun and relaxation, right? Just a bit of time left to sit back and stare at the clouds (or the waves, or the mountains…)
Cheers to summer, and to making the most of the time remaining!
I agree! Let’s make the most of the summer. And, since it will still be warm and sunny there are plenty of weekend get-aways to think about!
It feels like summer just started and you’re writing about the ‘end of summer.’ Wow! But I recognize that school begins earlier where you live than here in New York, so I still feel like I have time. While we don’t have any school age kids anymore, I identify and appreciate all of the wonderful wisdom you shared. And some of it it applicable even to us adults.
For example, being a tourist in your local area is such a wonderful idea. Already this summer, Steve and I visited several local places we’d never been. One was this gorgeous garden overlooking the Hudson River. You would love it, Diane, being the amazing gardener and plant lover that you are. And it’s always good to prepare for what’s coming up. So while I’m fully enjoying the summer season, we’re also working on plans for the future.
I love that you and Steve are playing tourist in your area.
I’ve lived in the south for more than three decades, but I have never been able to wrap my head around kids going back to school in August, as it’s never until the Wednesday after Labor Day where I’m from. Then again, I don’t have kids, so for me, I guess it can be summer until the weather gets chilly and nobody can tell me otherwise. 😉
My favorite tip is about incorporating foreign language apps and speaking in that language over mealtimes, even if you’re just discussing the food and making a few statements. But all of your advice is wise for the parent who knows that the summer is ending all too quickly.
Thank you, Julie!
Those are all great ideas! Seems like it takes forever for summer to get here then it goes by so fast. Something else we are doing this year before the end of summer, and since we haven’t really been anywhere since Covid, is a short road trip with all 4 kids. We’re a mixed family and between that and kids getting older, there aren’t too many of these road trips left for us.
Thank you, Marie-France! I love the idea of a road trip. You’re smart to embark on one before the children make their own plans.
My summer is speeding by, because we’ll be taking our youngest to college in mid-August. While I’m excited for him, I’m sad about all of the school years coming to a close – we won’t be looking up a bus route or shopping for crayons anymore. We did say just the other day that he needs to make a list of all of the things he wants to revisit or do here before he leaves – so, your post gives me encouragement to follow through on that. And project? Hmmm. Maybe I need to start one so I can finish one!