Strength For Back to School

Regardless of if you’re a student, parent, teacher or principal, the transition from the leisurely hours of summer to the hectic schedule of a classroom can be a bumpy ride. With so many goals to accomplish, it can often be difficult to focus and manage time.

So where do we get the hours, patience and motivation for tests, homework and having to raise our hands to ask to go to the bathroom? Where do we get the strength?

Loren Meaux is a fifth grader at Mount Carmel Elementary in Abbeville. This summer she took a trip to the mountains in Tennessee and went white water rafting.

“My favorite part was going to Wonder Works,” says Meaux. “It’s an upside down building that’s really cool.”

During the rest of the summer, Loren usually woke around 11 A.M. She’d spend the day with her dad or at a friend’s house. Her favorite things to do were watch television, ride her bike and play outside.

“The best part of school starting is that I get to see my friends and favorite teachers,” says Meaux. “The hardest part is that this year we change classes, so I have to carry around a lot of heavy books.”

According to Meaux, the biggest difference between school and summer is that she now has to wake up early. She also will spend less time playing, and more time studying and doing homework.

“Where do you get the strength to wake up early and go back to school?” I asked.

“I don’t have another choice,” said Meaux. “Everybody has to go to school. It’s the law.”

Corey Bourque, the principal at Delcambre High School, has worked in education for over thirty-five years. He starts his school year two weeks earlier than the students and ends two weeks after they leave for summer.

“My wife and I took a trip to Montgomery this summer,” says Bourque. “We also went camping a lot.”

According to Bourque, the best part of school being back in session is all of the activities like sports, band and cheerleading. He jokes that it is also a sign that duck-hunting season is not far behind.

“We have a lot of exciting things happening this school year,” says Bourque. “The cheerleading squad is going to the Capital One Bowl in Orlando, there’s a new concession stand at the football field and we’re getting a new all weather track.”

Bourque says that the biggest challenge of the first day of school is ensuring that everyone has a schedule. He said this year was a little more challenging because of expanded class sizes.

“Where do you get the strength to get through the school year?” I asked.

“We have great faculty, staff, students and parents who help,” says Bourque. “Knowing that we have community involvement gives me strength.”

Tara Frick is a kindergarten teacher at Forked Island Ernest Broussard Elementary. She and her husband, Blaine Frick, are the parents of six children. Their ages are twelve, eleven, ten, nine, seven and three. Five of them are in school and are in grades, seventh, sixth, fifth, fourth and second.

“The best part of back to school as a teacher is going through the learning process with new students,” says Frick. “I love seeing where they are, and knowing where I’m going to bring them.”

Frick says the most challenging part of heading back to school is the lack of time. In addition to being a mother and teacher, she is also a student getting her Masters in Education via an online classroom.

“What I’ll miss most about the summer is the time we got to spend together as a family,” says Frick. “Many of my children have extracurricular activities, so during school we aren’t together as much.”

Frick prepared for back to school by changing her children’s summer sleep schedule a few weeks before their first day. She had them go to bed earlier and wake up earlier to get them into a new routine.

“Our children have locker spaces at our house to keep all of the things they need for school,” says Frick. “Organization keeps me sane.”

During the summer, Frick woke up at 6:30 A.M. But now she wakes up at 5:00 A.M. This is her time to pray and prepare for the day ahead.

“Where do you get the strength to teach and be a mother to six kids?” I asked.

“From the grace of God, my husband and my family” said Frick. “They give me strength.”

Back to school is about more than big yellow buses, homework and basketball jamborees. It’s about learning, developing friendships and accomplishing goals.

Although the classroom can be hectic and stressful, it will make us stronger and give us the tools needed to function in today’s world and society. Through organization, support and remembering to enjoy the learning process, we can survive an education. By focusing and enduring the hard work involved in going back to school, we will be rewarded with strength.