Are You Ready for Back-to-School?

Are you and your family ready for the new school year?

Parents and families play a powerful role in supporting their children’s learning, health, and well-being at home and at school. When parents are engaged in their children’s learning and school activities, children earn better grades, choose healthier behaviors, have better social skills, and are better able to manage their emotions and cope with stressful situations.

Positive relationships and coping skills learned at home and at school can help children and adolescents develop the skills to recognize and manage their emotions, set and achieve positive goals, appreciate the perspectives of others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions, including avoiding substance use.

For young people, the earlier they initiate substance use, the higher the likelihood that they will develop a substance use disorder compared to those individuals who initiate use later on. Substance misuse can cause changes to the structure and function of the brain. The brain is especially vulnerable to substance exposure during adolescence.  According to the Surgeon General, nearly 3 in 4 individuals between ages 18 and 30 years who were admitted to substance use treatment programs started using substances by age 17 or younger. 

There are things you can do to help support and reinforce behaviors that contribute to a healthy and supportive home and school environment, such as:

  • Working with school staff to shape a healthy and supportive school environment. Learn more about the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) model, CDC’s framework for school health.

  • Taking an active part in your school’s decision-making in schools.

  • Maintaining a supportive home environment by modeling and promoting healthy eating, physical activity, self-care, and other healthy behaviors.

  • Keep the communication open. Make time to talk regularly with your children about issues that impact them - social interactions, peer pressure, bullying, mental and physical health, and about the risks of substance use, and listen to what they have to say.

POSTTracey Carlson