Help to keep learning No. 1
Published 2:38 pm Saturday, September 5, 2009
There’s a certain amount of anxiety that seems to accompany the first day of school. Teachers are anxious to establish the rules and set the tone for the year. Bus drivers are worried they’ll forget their routes as they grapple with the enormous responsibility they’re undertaking. Administrators are eager to get everyone quickly settled and engaged in the business of learning.
Student anxiety usually centers on the new sleeping schedule and finding a way to transition from the beach to the classroom after one spectacularly sunny summer vacation.
Parental apprehension is typically reserved for parents of kindergartners or high school freshmen who are forced to let go and entrust their precious children to the educational system and the inevitable influence of peer pressure.
This year, however, family financial anxiety has taken center stage for many households as they deal with budgetary challenges and, in some cases, extended unemployment. In most instances, local school districts and teachers are sensitive to those facing economic hardship because they’re facing the same challenges themselves.
Statistically, the average household spends just over $500 on back-to-school expenses. For financially strapped families, this number might as well be millions — they simply don’t have the money to spend right now. As many families grapple with the notion of needing assistance for the first time, they’re learning to navigate through the paperwork to sign up for free or reduced lunches and qualify for assistance with supplies and clothing — something they never imagined they’d have to do.
Fortunately, a comprehensive community resource database is a simple call away. By dialing 2-1-1, families can quickly source useful direction for the help they need. They should keep in mind that their child’s school or teacher can often serve as an effective resource.
Along with required immunizations, clothing and shoes, the laundry list of school supply requests in some districts can be daunting. We counted over 17 items on a few of the lists for local elementary school children, including at least one long list that requested (among other things) 40 sharpened pencils, three boxes of baby wipes and 15 white glue sticks (yes, they really mean 15) to establish a “community” resource for the classroom. Maybe this is the year for teachers to pare the list to a realistic level to help ease the burden on financially strapped families.
Working together, families and schools can reduce the extra anxiety imposed by financial problems — from eating lunch to participating in sports — so teachers and students can get down to the important business of learning, making friends and shaking off the regular back-to-school worries.
