UAE | Education
Back-to-school preparations in UAE
Parents look forward to more free time while children are excited to see their friends again
- By Hind Al Yousef, Community Web Journalist
- Published: 23:53 August 29, 2008
- Image Credit: Arshad Ali/Gulf News
- Bernadette with Jonas Lindstrom at her residence in Dubai.
Dubai: Summer is over, and September is here bringing along a new school year, which parents and children prepare for and welcome in their own different ways.
“I don't need to worry much about preparing my child for the start of the school year; he has always been very enthusiastic about it,'' Ritu Chawla, an Indian expatriate said about her four-year-old son, who is going back to school at the beginning of September.
“He's an only child and he gets lonely at home sometimes, so he enjoys going to kindergarten and playing with his friends there,'' she said.
“I feel happy when he is in school because I know he is learning and having fun, and at the same time I also get to have my own time and do the things I want without having to worry about him constantly,'' Ritu said.
“The only way I have prepared him so far is by telling him that his holiday will be over and he will go back to school and see all his friends soon.''
Although he replies with a smile and says he likes the holidays, she knows that when he starts attending, he'll get used to the routine in no time.
Routine
It's similar for Bernadette Lindstrom, a Filipina expatriate and a mother of a seven-year-old boy.
“My son doesn't really need encouragement to go back to school as he enjoys being in school and is excited to go back and see his friends,'' she said.
“However, it's the early morning start that gets to him, therefore, I have to make sure that his bedtime routine gradually gets back to normal and that is being in bed by 8pm.''
Lindstrom is also another mother who is getting more free time now that she is sending her son back to school.
“When my son is home, I usually go home in the middle of the day to check on him. However, with him back in school, I can spend lunch breaks with friends if I want to, or go to the gym.''
“I am happy knowing that he's in school doing something productive and learning new things, rather than at home where he watches TV and plays computer games all the time,'' she added.
How have you prepared for back-to-school days? Are you excited that the school year has begun? Tell us.
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