The 1 Thing Parents Must Remember

You've probably already been to Staples or Target to buy all the "must-haves" on your child's school list. Part of the ritual signaling the end of sleeping late (for you and them) and the start of another school year. Yet there's one thing you need to remember.

It's simple really. You know your child best. That's it.

Oh, it's easy to be convinced that others know better than you do what your child needs, how your child thinks, or why your child acts or reacts as they do. And it's true that sometimes the answers are as complex as the issues themselves.

Teachers have insights into the 8-3 school day that you lack (another reason for ongoing and meaningful home/school communication), and family is only too happy to offer their opinions. Everyone thinks they know best. But you know what? They don't. You do. It's you, the parent/s, who own the subject-matter expert title when it comes to your child.

Maybe your son or daughter is starting school for the first time (a major milestone ripe with anticipation and anxiety) and if so, there will definitely be new things you'll learn about them. Or maybe your child or teen is moving into another grade in which case you already have keen insights into what's working and what's not. Not to mention ideas about how to help them if they're struggling, whether academically, socially or behaviorally.

It's really quite simple...and sometimes the simplest lessons are the hardest to remember. You know your child best. You're the expert. The specialist. The one with the insights and "the goods" to share.

So if there's only one thing you remember before they head off to school for another year, it's this -- the most important letters any parent/s can have after their names are M.O.M. and D.A.D. These letters say it all.