It seems like just yesterday the kids came barreling through the door, threw their backpacks down and let go of all things school-related.

Homework and bedtime became video games and beach time, and family dinners became less a routine and more of a free-for-all.

Back With Class | Backpack Safety

So, how's a parent to go about roping their beach bums back in and getting them ready to hit the books?

Start Early

Jan Harp Domene, the PTA national president, said getting back into the educational mindset should be a gradual process, and that it is never too early to start talking about back to school.

"As soon as the enrollment information comes home, school should be a topic of discussion and encouragement," she said.

Joanna Link, a mother of three, said she tries to get her kids ready for back to school in late August.

But not all of her children are ready to make the adjustment.

She's pretty sure her son Thaddeus, 11, hadn't even cleaned out his backpack from last year.

"Tad could really care less. It's all put away, and it's up to me to get it all together for him," she said.

Her daughter Francesca, 8, is just the opposite. She emptied her backpack as soon as school ended and all of her new supplies are in her room.

Routines Start Before School

No matter how your children feel about the approaching school year, it's important to get them back into a routine before they set foot in a classroom.

Domene recommended getting children into a sleep routine a few weeks prior to the first day, a practice she uses with her own children.

"I always used a two-week schedule with my kids, two weeks of earlier bed time and an earlier wake up time," she said.

Link and her husband, Christopher, try to get their children to go to bed earlier a few weeks prior, but it is a task she said is hard with her oldest and youngest.

"They are night owls like me, and like to sleep in," she said.

Keep Reading

Dan Palheiredo, a high school English teacher in Massachusetts, believes that reading throughout the summer can make the adjustment back to school easier.

And if they haven't been reading, Palheiredo recommends getting them to do so as soon as possible. He said it could be a sports magazine or the new Harry Potter book.

"Contrary to popular belief, there's very little junk reading actually out there," he said.

Stress-Busting Tips

Preparing your children for the school year doesn't end when they get on the school bus. Once the day comes, it can bring a new level of adjustments and stress.

Domene had these tips for a successful transition and year at school:

Meet your child's teacher before school starts. She said her theory is that you should never have a stranger educate your child. Get to know teachers and tell them about your child's needs and challenges.

Get involved and join your PTA to see what you can do for the benefit of all the children in your school. Those are the children your child will play and interact with.

Make sure your child has a medical check-up prior to the start of school with vision and hearing analyses, and immunizations if needed.

Make sure your child has a routine of a good breakfast and a full night's sleep.

Ask your children about their school days. Listen and react to their excitement, no matter how bad a day you had.

Keeping Track

Even with all of her preparations, Link said back-to-school time is very stressful.

"It gets particularly chaotic the first few weeks when we are adjusting to the routine," she said. "It is crazy dealing with the bombardment of paperwork that comes home from school for three children."

She uses a family calendar to keep track of all the activities, field trips and paperwork due, but said she still misses things sometimes. She also labels all of the kids' school supplies.

"Last year, I was up until 1 a.m. the night before the first day of school labeling all of their things," she said.

Teachers Play A Role

Palheiredo said no matter how much you prepare, an adjustment period will be needed.

"Anyone asked to go back to work after such a lengthy off period is going to need at least a few days to adjust," he said. "It's like coming up from the bottom of the ocean -- you need to decompress."

He believes the length of time it takes a student to adjust is contingent upon how the teacher handles class from the first day.

"The first week of a class can really set the tone for the rest of the year," he said, "It's important to establish two things early on. First, the students must see you as an authority figure, and second, they must realize from day one that yours is a class in which they can expect to be kept busy."

Even though the school year brings Link some time to herself while the kids are at school, she said she prefers summertime.

"I think summer is way too short," she said, adding that she thinks summer vacations should be longer, like when she went to school.

Overall, the best summer advice Palheiredo said he could give a child is to wear sunblock. "There's nothing worse than peeling on the first day back. Remember, you can't think if you're pink," he said. "Seriously, though, just keep reading."

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