When initially blending families its important to make a special effort to minimize disruption to the lives of your stepchildren. Moving and the associated changes: new home and neighborhood, new schools, making new friends, loss of old friends, concerns of the biological dad, etc. are potential stress producing events for everyone involved especially the children. The addition of these stressors, in addition to the stresses associated with blending and adjusting to you the new stepdad can increase the difficulty in blending. The children may direct their resentment of the changes in their life toward you the stepdad. If you must move and you need to find a new school for your kids, please read and consider the tips provided by regular contributor Chaleigh Glass.
In most cities and towns, parents will typically have a number of schools to choose from. When you’re looking to enroll your child into one of them, you naturally want to choose the best available option, but this can be much more difficult than it may seem.
Here are five things you’ll want to look for when finding a new school for your children:
Travel Distance
The distance between your home and the school is an important consideration. The shorter the distance, the better. This leaves your child with more time in the morning to eat a nutritious breakfast.
If you have to drive your child to school yourself, you’ll save on gas and vehicle wear. Even if there is a better school that is far away, you will also have to take into consideration what the travel time will take away from your child’s day. For instance, they may not be able to finish homework and other activities due to the need to go to sleep and wake up earlier.
Professionalism
When you get to meet some of the teachers, note whether they conduct themselves in a professional manner. Do they interact appropriately with other staff members and the students? Do they appear to take their job seriously? You should also feel confident the teachers understand the material they’re teaching, and they’re patient and clear with the students who need help.
Many schools will allow for you to sit in on a class, which is a great way to judge a few of the teachers’ abilities.
Classes and Classroom Structure
It’s very important to understand what classes are available to your child. Besides the federally required curriculum, elective classes can be great for helping your child develop and build upon an interest or natural talent.
Classroom structure is also critical. An overcrowded, unorganized, or otherwise poorly managed classroom hinders students’ ability to focus and retain information they’ve learned. Good signs to look for include tidiness, a lack of distractions, adequate spacing between desks, access to proper and sufficient tools and materials, and the use of classroom management software.
Cleanliness and Student Safety
Cleanliness and safety are key aspects that shouldn’t be overlooked, even if the school looks good in all other regards. Make sure the hallways, classrooms, and bathrooms are tidy and well-maintained.
Also, find out what procedures and policies are in place for medical and other emergencies, injuries, medications and illnesses. Are the teachers or school nurses authorized to give students their medications? Are they willing and able to accommodate your child’s particular health and medical needs? These are important questions to ask since they may directly affect the health and safety of your child.
Food Quality and Standards
If you want to take advantage of school lunches, you should first find out about the food quality and dietary standards. More schools are now providing wholesome and nutritious options to the students.
In addition, you’ll want to find out about the schools’ awareness and policies on food allergies and intolerances. With more children being diagnosed with these issues, it’s becoming more important for schools to take the necessary measures to keep everyone safe and healthy by offering a variety of foods on their menus and providing parents and children with the ingredients of everything that is offered.
Taking into account these factors will enable you to make a wise decision on which school to choose for your children. Depending on your priorities and preferences, you can have an easier time weighing one against the other based on these factors.
Chaleigh Glass is a writer and photographer from NYC. When she isn’t busy in her apartment writing, Chaleigh loves to travel. Her escapades and interactions with people from a broad spectrum of backgrounds has given her a vast amount of different experiences and pieces of knowledge that she loves to share in her writings.
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