It’s already the end of August, and the school year is almost upon us! There isn't much time left to plan, and planning the school year can be complicated, so we’ve put together a short guide to help you.

Activities to Stimulate Your Child’s Thinking

One of the best ways to prepare for school is by doing some fun activities with them to stimulate their brain and get their minds moving. Here are a few activities we like to do:

• Play video games with them like Minecraft (being sure to get them to do math and think critically while building). You may also find other games or activities your kids like and use that as a foundation to build skills, discussion and find real world applications.
• Read interesting books and follow up with discussion (like Dr. Suess!). A fun, creative activity is brainstorming and writing alternate endings.
• Going to the school and walking around to familiarize them with the area while getting some exercise. It's a fun visualization activity and great way to explore the neighbourhood.

Healthy Meals to Increase Brain Power

A healthy diet is one of the most important things to plan for when going through any major change and development – and school is no exception! Here are some great nutritious foods for the school year and throughout. Some of our favourite foods for brain power are:

• Salmon is an excellent brain food. It contains omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA, which are essential for brain growth and function
• Eggs are another excellent brain food, containing plenty of protein as well as choline, a nutrient known to improve memory development
• Peanut Butter contains plenty of Vitamin E, which protects nervous membranes, as well as thiamin, which helps the brain and nervous system use glucose for energy. It has plenty of protein as well. (Make sure to keep nuts at home).
• Whole Grains are a necessary food which are perfect during breakfast, as they contain slow-digesting carbs which give a long-lasting energy throughout the day

Planning Extracurriculars

Is your child going to be participating in any extracurricular activities? Extracurriculars are a great way to expand your child's knowledge, expose them to varying topics, hone in on specific skills and meet new friends outside of school. If so, you need to get prepared by:

• Writing all the practice and big event dates on your calendar so you don’t forget
• Picking up any uniforms or equipment
• Knowing where you need to go ahead of time so you don’t get lost
• Finally, if you’re looking for extracurricular activities for your kids, signing them up for one of our after school or weekend programs can help them learn a lot of essential skills like coding and leadership.