Going back to school after the holidays

Going back to school after the holidays can be difficult. You might be really excited to get back to school, catch up with all your friends and start the new school year.

Or you might be sad that days of sleeping in, going to the beach, and having extra time on your hands are over until the next holiday.

No matter what you might be feeling, here are a few tips that can help you get back into the right headspace for going back to school and get you motivated for the new school year.

Some suggestions for making the move back to school as stress-free as possible are:

Set yourself some goals for the year - A good way to get motivated for the new school year might be to think about the things you might like to achieve during the year. These might be school related goals - for example, to get good marks in English and Maths. Or, they might be more personal goals, for example to get your drivers licence.

Get involved - A good way to get back into things at school and to make new friends is to become involved in activities that interest you. This way you are meeting people whom you have things in common with. You may want to get involved in:

• sport (most schools offer a range of different team sports)
• music
• debating
• Student Representative Council.

Breaking the ice - It is possible that you will find yourself in classes with people you don't know very well when you go back to school. Often other people are feeling nervous about making new friends. It can sometimes take someone to suggest doing something to break the ice. You may like to ask someone in your class to kick the footy or head down the street together.

It is often easy to identify different groups within schools: popular, academic, sporty, rebellious, etc. However, interacting with anyone (no matter what group they sit in at lunchtime) can help you to be more open-minded.

Express yourself - Being able to express how you are feeling may help to release some of the tension you may feel. There are a number of ways that you are able to express yourself safely, such as exercise, writing in journal, or share your experiences and find support.

Have something to look forward to - Sometimes it is helpful to plan ahead so that you have something to look forward to. You may want to plan to catch up with friends after school or plan to do something special over the weekend.

And there are always next holidays to look forward to!