Feature Channels: Back to School

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"As children begin preparing to return to school, it's important for parents and children to go over safety tips together," says Susan Laurence, injury prevention coordinator, Trauma Services at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. "This will help ensure a safe, enjoyable start to the school year for everyone." Laurence offers guidelines regarding bus, pedestrian and home safety to help parents and caregivers keep children safe during throughout the school season.

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"Taking time to talk with and listen to children about the upcoming school year is one of the best ways parents can help them make the transition to school life," says David Smith, Ph.D., clinical child psychologist in the Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics of Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

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Ryerson University is pleased to offer expert tips for students and parents on going back to school. With experts available for comment, the ready-made tip sheet contents include topics such as: leaving home, finances, social media, the Freshman 15, making the most of student life and more...

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Forget "No pain, no gain." As youngsters return to the rigorous sports activities that can define the beginning of the school year, precautionary measures should be taken to reduce the risk of injury and make the experience more enjoyable, according to a UMDNJ expert.

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Going back to school means a return to sports and to other physically demanding activities. Preparation for these activities is often intense and usually takes place outdoors, in the extreme heat of summer. It is imperative that students stay hydrated and maintain high energy levels.

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While parents are preparing to send their child back to school, they need to remember that nutrition plays a huge role in their child's academic success. Mary Pat Alfaro, MS, RD, LD, clinical manager in the Division of Nutrition Therapy at Cincinnati Children's, explains multiple studies have shown that poor nutrition adversely effects school performance and overall achievement.

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Many children and teenagers carry backpacks during the school year for schoolbooks and other supplies. "When used correctly, backpacks are the most efficient way to carry a load and distribute the weight among some of the body's strongest muscles," says Eric Wall, Director, Orthopaedic Surgery Division.

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Over the next two months, millions of children will head back to school, with books, supplies and lunches slung over their shoulders. Although convenient and popular, backpacks can cause pain or encourage the development of a chronic structural disease when used incorrectly.

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Beginning this fall public television stations across the nation will air a new film, "When Learning Comes Naturally," produced by Jonathan Diamond Associates in association with Sarah Lawrence College's Child Development Institute (CDI). The film is the fourth in a series begun in 1998 that explores various ways that children learn.

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As kids make their way back-to-school, incidents of bullying will inevitably arise. Whether you're the new kid at school or a past victim, there are many steps that can be taken to avoid or stop bullying, says Sally Black, Ph.D., an assistant professor of health services at Saint Joseph's University.

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A linguistic professor whose office shelves hold more books than some small school libraries, laments that college students don't know the language of the world in which they live because they don't own or use dictionaries.

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Teachers and childcare workers who want to create a learning environment that promotes each child's success and minimizes the occurrence of challenging behaviors and undesired responses can turn to advice from two Tennessee Tech University professors.

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As families frolicked at the beach, American scientists unveiled discoveries about the inner workings of our bodies. To keep up with advances in the medical sciences, subscribe to free materials published by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

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Surveys continually indicate that strong writing is the most important skill employers seek in college graduates, regardless of concentration or major. Carol Zoref, writing coordinator at Sarah Lawrence College, renowned for its intensive writing requirements across the disciplines, says good writing takes time. A sampling of recent Sarah Lawrence College graduates working in a variety of fields bears testimony to the advantages learning to write well in college carry in the job market.

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Millions of children returning to school this fall will struggle under the weight of an overstuffed backpack, putting themselves at risk of injury, according to Dr. Michael Vitale, chief of pediatric spine and scoliosis surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital.

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Many children return to school sports, such as soccer, football, cross-country and volleyball in late-July or early-August. Jon Divine, M.D., director of Sports Medicine at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, says it's most important for children to be in shape even before showing up for the first day of practice or tryouts to reduce the risk of injury. Because of their smaller size, younger athletes have a smaller surface area available for evaporative cooling and are less efficient at cooling body temperature then adults.

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The first day of school always requires preparations -- notebooks, pens and a new set of clothes. But don't forget to prepare for your child's health, says Dr. Luz Adriana-Matiz, pediatrician and medical director of Win For Asthma at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital and assistant professor of clinical pediatrics at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

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A $1.5 million USDA grant will look at changing lifestyle behaviors of college students in an effort to reduce growing obesity among young adults. The 3-year study will seek input from students among a consortium of 11 institutions to develop an Internet-based, intervention program.

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Your high school graduate is off to college to embark on a newly independent life. But they're not the only ones making a transition: parents, too, face emotional and lifestyle adjustments. With advice on empty-nest syndrome and how to handle the college transition, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital physicians offer tips on how to overcome the sadness, helping your child become a financially responsible adult, and staying connected without overstepping limits.

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Transitioning from elementary school to middle school can be both exciting and terrifying for a tween. Parental involvement is important for a successful move to middle school.

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Education experts from the Vanderbilt Peabody College of education and human development are available for back-to-school interviews. Peabody College was ranked by U.S. News & World Report as the No. 1 education school in the nation in 2009.

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One of tweens' biggest social concerns is: "will I have friends?" University of Alabama education professor Natalie Adams offers parents some tips for helping their tween navigate the social scene in middle school.

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The tween years bring on radical changes in behaviors. University of Alabama education professor Liza Wilson talks about what exactly is going on with tweens and ways parents can distinguish between behaviors.

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As dropout rates rise across the country, the Tween years have become more important. University of Alabama education professor Joyce Stallworth explains why these years are so important in reducing the dropout rates in high school.

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Orthopaedic surgeons offer tips for keeping kids healthy at the start of the school year

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Tweens spend about $43 billion a year and influence the spending of billions of dollars. But with today's economy, University of Alabama business professor Kristy Reynolds says tweens are saying it's "cool" to be frugal.

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Reading contemporary young adult novels helps tweens not only in improving reading skills, but also with issues they face on a daily basis.

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Teaching financial responsibility is most effective during that time in a young person's life when they are most impressionable. That time is during the tween years.

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A new program connecting incoming students with non-academic advisors has personalized the freshman orientation process at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia.

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History Professor Jeffrey Hyson, Ph.D., of Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, will transform his Western Civilization classes into fascinating games by using a unique pedagogy called Reacting to the Past.

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"I am helping to change the classroom." That's what Mike Dickson told his grandmother once during a telephone conversation when she asked what he did for a living.

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A comprehensive look at zero tolerance policies in schools finds their harmful effects may outweigh the benefits. An education policy brief created by University of Delaware researchers brings together best and worst practices in zero tolerance.

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With summer ending and school underway, parents are transitioning from hearing their children moan about not being able to swim everyday, to hearing their child complain about homework, their new teachers or being in a different class than their friends. Many parents also begin to hear more complaints of tummy aches and headaches as a result of their child returning to school. The psychological term for illnesses a child may develop when he or she is trying to avoid school is School Avoidance, or School Refusal. Symptoms may include nausea, fatigue, headaches and abdominal pain. According to Lori Crosby, Psy.D., Associate Professor, Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, in general, if children complain about stomachaches and other ailments and do not have symptoms of fever or a contagious illness, parents should feel comfortable sending them to school. "If the parent is unsure about whether to send a child to school, scheduling a visit with the chil

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Studying capitalism is no longer just for the business school - even religion and women's studies classes are studying it this year at Wake Forest University.

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In 1990, California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) Community Arts Partnership (CAP) first offered college level arts education free of charge to the youth of Los Angeles County. Two decades later, CAP has trained over 200,000 young artists; opened pathways to college and careers in the arts; and in the process, created a national model for arts education partnerships.

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Experts at Seattle Children's Hospital have put together a Healthy Child Checklist to ensure that children "“ and parents "“ are prepared for the first day of school.

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Sally Black, RN, Ph.D., associate professor of health services at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, was particularly happy to see the American Association of Pediatrics' newly released policy statement on preventing youth violence. She was even more elated that for the first time ever the statement specifically addresses the issue of bullying, which Black has long been researching and advocating against.

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Pushing and punching. Spreading rumors and name-calling. Whether it's physical or verbal, bullying has no place at school or in cyberspace. Parents can help children not be bullied or be bulliers, but first it is important to understand why bullying occurs.

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As students settle back into their desks for another school year, parents, school nurses and pediatricians respond to increased complaints of stomach pain. Many of these seasonal belly-aches are dismissed as nothing more than a case of the back-to-school blues. However, in many instances the pain kids feel is the result of a complicated and often misdiagnosed medical condition that researchers at Nationwide Children's Hospital now believe could be helped with the use of medications typically used to treat depression.

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Survey reveals moms' current concerns may distract them from the truly important health and nutrition issues facing their children.

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When fall classes at the University of California, San Diego begin on Sept. 25, freshmen will be on their own for the first time to spend endless hours on the computer, play video games and eat whatever they want, a recipe for weight gain. However, several UC San Diego wellness, weight-management and counseling programs will help students beat the dreaded "freshmen fifteen."

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With summer ending and school underway, parents are transitioning from hearing their children moan about not being able to swim everyday, to their child complaining about homework, their new teachers or being in a different class than their friends. Many parents also begin to hear more complaints of tummy aches and headaches as a result of returning back to school. The psychological term for school-induced illnesses a child may develop when he or she is trying to dodge school is School Avoidance, or School Refusal. Symptoms include nausea, fatigue, headaches and abdominal pain.

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New students find the whole experience of college to be educational, and some learn the hard way about the dangers of credit cards.Doug Borkowski -- director of Iowa State University's Financial Counseling Clinic, which provides credit management counseling among its services -- says students should do a little prudent planning before using a credit card.

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A few strategies can keep young athletes injury-free this fall

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What college freshmen should bring to college is sometimes not what they actually bring to campus. This list includes practical suggestions as well as a few "tongue-in-cheek" ones.

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While U.S students continue to lag behind many countries academically, national statistics show that teachers have responded by assigning more homework. But according to a joint study by researchers at Binghamton University and the University of Nevada, when it comes to math, piling on the homework may not work for all students.

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School children across the world may speak different languages but there is one experience an estimated 90 percent of all students share: wearing a backpack. Researchers from the University of San Diego, California School of Medicine say those students also share a common problem: low back pain due to overloaded backpacks.

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Pre-schools are playing a greater role than ever in preparing young children for school readiness, and the best pre-schools will have a kid-friendly environment and emphasize the five "Cs:" collaboration, communication, content, creative innovation and confidence, says a Temple University child developmental psychologist.

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Tips on how to help your child get back in the school groove, from Mary Muscari, associate professor at Binghamton University, State University of New York, and author of Not My Kid: 21 Steps for Raising a Nonviolent Child and Let Kids be Kids: Rescuing Childhood.'

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Case studies confirm that following the 18 steps in a practical guide for school bond initiatives leads to successful elections.