Back to School: Get Ready for Aug. 23

Are your kids ready to go back to school? Are Pinole residents around schools ready for a little extra traffic? Tuesday, Aug. 23, is the date this year when West Contra Costa Unified School District students will have to get up on time and start getting into the swing of the school year.

Parents beware, the first day is a minimum day, luckily for the kids. Make sure to check the District's calendar for more of those days.

Students going to St. Joseph's and Salesian High School will start a day earlier, on Monday, Aug. 22. 

Summer vacation hardly seems like it could be over and already. I am starting to put my kids to bed earlier. This came as an unpleasant surprise to my kids but this week they are awakening to the alarm clock to get them in practice for the real week of school ahead. We are off to a very grumpy start with that.

School uniforms are bought and hanging in the closet, much to my kids' dismay. Our elementary and middle schools still require that kids wear them unless a uniform waiver is signed by the parent. I feel that my kids have plenty of other opportunities to wear clothes of their choosing. Khaki or navy-colored pants and collared polo shirts in white, navy or light blue won't strip them of their individuality and make things very economical as well as convenient in the big picture.

Parents used to complain at the start of the uniform policy that was implemented by the school district in 2006 that uniforms would be too costly. At a good sale you can pick up the polo shirts for $5 and the pants for around $12. I don't think that many can argue the value at those prices. Some of our schools, like Ellerhorst Elementary School, even offer a uniform exchange program created by their PTA. Parents are invited to bring in their student's gently worn uniforms for others to have while picking up the next size needed for their kids. A contribution is not necessary to receive clothes, either. This is just another example of how we can make things easier on one another as a community.

Some parents do sign the uniform waiver. Still, certain guidelines must be followed in what the kids wear to school.These rules apply to avoid gang-related dressing. If you see your kid walking out of the house in the morning wearing a blue or red shoe lace, or backwards-turned ball cap, you had better think twice about letting them go out like that. It could bring about some unwanted circumstances in some schools, not so much around Pinole. Parents have a lot to stay on top of.

Lunches for school have been a challenge for me with my kids. I pack lunches from home and I tend not to buy a lot of the pre-packaged, processed snack foods that they drool over. We know too much now about partially hydrogenated oils, sodium and high fructose corn syrup (despite what the Corn Refiners Association tells us) to keep on packing the Twinkies. I plan on taking them to the store with me on a mission to makes some healthy choices on some snack foods past the fruit and veggies that they will enjoy eating. is a great place for that.

are a popular choice for many parents. Some kids have strong opinions against them. The state still offers a program to feed kids through the hot lunch programs. Parents can apply discreetly online for free or reduced price lunches for their kids.

With all that our schools and teachers are faced with in budget cuts and other dilemmas, parent involvement is more than ever crucial for helping maintain school morale and volunteering. Joining the PTA can help our schools with the small fee that is charged. This small fee, depending on the school, is around $10. Going to a PTA meeting is a great way to find out what's happening in the schools and finding ways to help out.  Parents who want to donate more can make a tax deductible donation to the PTA or participate in fundraisers.

PTA funds, depending on the school, can provide things like handwriting books in the classroom or toner and paper for the teacher's photocopying of homework sheets. There was once a week where one of my kids almost didn't get a homework packet because there wasn't a donation of paper for that. 

Teachers appreciate it when parent regularly check their students' backpacks. That simple action can tell parents how their kid is doing and how their help is needed. With larger class sizes and less money for classroom supplies, items needed for the classroom to run smoothly are often respectfully posted on a wish list along with volunteer requests. Sometimes parents can do field trip paperwork, check out the students' books at the class's scheduled library time, help with extra projects — and the list goes on. These tasks greatly help teachers who have more than ever to do.   

Things are a lot different in school than when most of us went through.