For most of Fort Bend County, school starts next week. If we thought last year was the most bewildering year in recent history, prepare for another three-ring circus.

No matter if teachers have to find a way to socially distance 36 kids in a classroom the size of your smallest bedroom or if it’s back to normal, here are some tips for you to remember as the 2021-22 school year begins.

One. The teacher is a human being. He or she will make mistakes, achieve incredible goals and cry herself to sleep. Give your kid’s teacher a break and if you’re criticizing without helping, you’re part of the problem.

Two. Your child is a human being. He or she will make mistakes this year. They’ll hit another kid, spill their milk and flunk a test. Find out the root of the problem before jumping to conclusions.

Three. Administrators are human beings. I don’t know any assistant principal or principal who wished they could spend all day assigning detention, checking to make sure teachers were on hall duty or breaking up fights.

They got into administration to help teachers and students achieve success. If you’re complaining that your darling couldn’t possibly be breaking the rules or they’re being too harsh for taking away your daughter’s cell phone when she had it out during class, you are making an administrator’s job harder.

Four. Make sure your child is prepared. That means getting kids to bed on time. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 9-12 hours of sleep a night for elementary students and 8-10 hours of sleep a night for teens.

If your third grader has to get up at 6 a.m. to get dressed and catch the bus, they need to be in bed by 8 p.m. at the latest. You know how you are when you’re tired – your child’s no different.

Five. Buy supplies now. You might not think your child will go through two boxes of 24-count crayons in one year.

That is incorrect thinking.

Your child will not only wear down the red and black crayons by Thanksgiving, they will break all the crayons in the box by Christmas. Buy back-up supplies now while they’re cheap. That 50-cent box of crayons is $1.50 in January.

Six. The teacher is right. No matter what your child tells you, back the teacher up first. My sons were notorious for blaming everything on the teacher. They learned that trick from blaming their youngest brother instead of accepting personal responsibility.

Seven. Make learning important. Parents are busy working from home or juggling two jobs to make ends meet. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put value on school work. Make it a priority to ask what they learned that day, but don’t fall for the “nothing” answer.

Ask specifics.

“What science experiment did you do today?” “What book did the teacher read to the class today?” “What did you play at recess?” Older teens would rather talk about what’s happening on the social level. Ask but don’t pry.

Eight. Be there. In the elementary schools, parents can barely walk down crowded halls on Open House night. On the secondary level, teachers get solitary work finished because few parents attend.

Your child needs to know you care about their academic success every single year, not just when they’re in grade school. Show up, meet the teachers and establish a line of communication so you know what’s happening.

Nine. Learning is 24/7. Put your phone down and encourage your children to seek out information and knowledge.

A car ride is an opportunity to talk about cars, traffic, weather, flowers, concrete, pollution – the list is endless. You can make your children life-long learners by teaching them to be curious about the world around them.

Ten.  Enjoy the year. No matter what happens, soak up these years with your child because they will never again be a second grader, a middle-schooler or a high-school senior. Your email, texts and Tik-Tok videos can wait. Your child will not.

Enjoy the year and buckle up.

It’s going to be a heck of a ride.

This column was originally published in The Fort Bend Herald.