The Grandparents Guide for Back To School

This Grandparents’ Guide for Back to School will help you know the tangible things you can do to help your grandchildren successfully through their school year.

We love being involved in our grandchildren’s lives and having the opportunity to offer support and positive influence. We are very involved with the back-to-school process and look forward to it each year. 

I once saw a bumper sticker that read, “If I had known grandchildren were so great, I would have had them first!”

Table of Contents

• How can you be involved in your grandchildren’s school year?
  • 1. Attend the open house
  • 2. Academic calendar
  • 3. Get on the pickup list
  • 4. Get the windshield pickup number for your car
  • 5. Take the school tour
  • 6. Volunteer
    • A few possible volunteer tasks include:
  • 7. Eat lunch with your grandchild
  • 8. Attend their performances or games
  • Grandparents Day
  • 10. Help pay for the many things they need
  • 11. After-school care
  • 12. Homework help or support
  • 13. Visit the library
  • 14. Celebrate achievements
  • 15. Be a trusted listener
  • Free Printable
• Save this information for each grandchild:
• More Kids Activities
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Do you love being involved in your grandkids’ lives? See my Grandma Summer Camp Ideas. Hosting your version of Grandma Camp during summer break allows you to spend quality time having fun with the grandkids.

We have six grandchildren and have always gotten involved and helped out with anything we could during their school year. This information is from our personal experiences. Our oldest daughter has 5 children. All five are grown except one, who is in high school. We are very involved with supporting her activities. The youngest is in Kindergarten this year, so we are still on duty as active grandparents with school-age grandchildren.

How can you be involved in your grandchildren’s school year?

1. Attend the open house

Attend the open house and meet the teachers. Allow the teachers to put a name with a face and ensure child safety. This is always a fun time. I have fond memories of doing this with the oldest grandson for his first year of high school. We walked the halls and found where the lunchroom and gym were located, as well as his classrooms. The teachers want to meet family members for their students.

Meeting the teachers allows both of you to put a name with a face. When you ask your grandchild about their day and they say Mr. Smith or Mrs. Brown gave us this assignment, you will remember that teacher because you met them.

2. Academic calendar

Download or print a copy of the current school year’s academic calendar. It is called the Academic Calendar and can be found on your county board of education website.

Printing the calendar will show when all the holidays are scheduled. If you have grandchildren in high school, there will be sporting events calendars on their school sports page. However, those dates are subject to change based on the weather or other unforeseen circumstances.

3. Get on the pickup list

Be Sure Your Name Is On The Pick Up List. Remind your busy son or daughter to put your name on the pickup list. If you are not on the list, you will not be allowed to pick the grandchildren up from school in the event you are called on unexpectedly. 

4. Get the windshield pickup number for your car

Gain your own set of Pick Up Papers/Windshield Name Signs. Most schools assign each child a number and a small paper sign to display in the windshield of your car for car riders. If you are called on at the last minute to pick up your grandchildren, not having that sign can create a delay. You’ll have to park and go into the office with your photo ID.

5. Take the school tour

Tour the Middle or High School with transitioning grandchildren. Transitioning from a smaller school into a much larger one can be just a bit traumatizing for young preteens and teens. Our school system always hosts an open house to allow students, parents, and grandparents to ‘walk their schedule’ and meet the teachers.  Be sure to attend this event! It will help you to understand what they are experiencing.

Our grandchildren attend a very large high school where it is a one-mile walk from the front door to the back. If I had not visited, I would never have believed it for myself.

6. Volunteer

Get your name on the Volunteer Rooster.  There is a plethora of volunteer jobs and tasks that must be completed. Some require going to the school, but there are also tasks you can do from home. If you have elementary-age grandchildren, there are opportunities to go read to a class occasionally. It doesn’t have to be your grandchildren’s class. You can volunteer for any class.

Be sure to let your grandchild know each time you volunteer, so they get the joy of feeling special.

A few possible volunteer tasks include:

• Classroom (grading papers, reading stories)
• Tutoring
• Reading books to children
• Office
• Media Center (shelving books, reading..)
• Field trip chaperone
• Science lab
• Musical assistance
• Lunchroom supervision
• Booster Club activities (for band or sports)
• Art
• PTA (fundraising, labels for education..)

7. Eat lunch with your grandchild

This is why you want to write down their lunchtime. Call the office and ask if you are allowed to bring in outside food. Our grands always love it when we eat lunch with them and bring something from one of their favorite fast food places.

8. Attend their performances or games

There are many extracurricular activities for school children. Band, Chorus, Theater, and Sports, to name a few. There will be a performance schedule you can get, if possible, so you can plan to be in attendance. TIP: Go a little early to get a good parking spot and a good seat. These events can be quite crowded.

Grandparents Day

9. Grandparents’ Day is a big deal at the elementary grade level. Our schools tie Grandparent Day in with their annual Book Fair fundraiser. You see what they are doing there! Take some money. They usually feed the grandparents a little snack in the classroom and encourage us to have lunch with our grandchildren on that day as well.

10. Help pay for the many things they need

Public school or Private school, it doesn’t matter which; there are many things the kids will need or want throughout the school year, not just school supplies. It can become a financial strain on the parents. We always help out in any way we can. It takes more than just basic school supplies these days.

One of the things that high schools offer is a yearly pass to all of the sporting events. High schoolers enjoy supporting their team by going to the events. It can get costly for parents to have money for entry and snacks at every game. So, high schools offer a discounted yearly pass.

One of my favorite ways to help out was to take the high school boys shopping for prom or homecoming dance clothes. I love going shopping with my grandchildren. We have six grandchildren. Only one is a girl. We have established ourselves as her go-to for clothes for special events, and we love every minute of it.

11. After-school care

You are an amazing amount of help to the parents, and especially to your grandchildren when you are their after-school care.

12. Homework help or support

Sometimes, the only thing the child might need is encouragement to complete their homework assignments. You may balk at the idea of homework help, but ask and listen. You might be surprised how much help you can be. You shouldn’t do the assignment, but steer their thinking process in the right direction.

13. Visit the library

Schedule a trip to the local library to assist with homework assignments. This is a great way to encourage children to read and study. The library is a great resource for writing and research assignments. It is a good way to steer kids to think for themselves and avoid using AI.

14. Celebrate achievements

Celebrate even the smallest achievement. You never know how a little encouragement can influence attitude. It doesn’t have to be a gift. It should be a gift. Sometimes, encouraging words go a long way.

15. Be a trusted listener

This is especially important for high school students. Do not judge. Our children today are facing challenges we did not have to face. Some of the problems are the same, some are very different. Don’t betray their trust. Brace yourself to hear things you might not expect to hear. Ask open-ended questions to encourage them to think the problem through for themselves.

Free Printable

Free Printable Info Page for each child (print as many as you need)

Save this information for each grandchild:

• The teacher’s name for each of your grandchildren.(That can be between 5-7 different teachers)
• What time does the school day begin officially
• What time does the school day end
• What time is the student considered tardy in the morning
• Lunch time and duration, and lunchroom location in the building
• Which days are PE (sadly, PE does not occur every day)? If your grandchild is spending the night with you on a school night and the next day is PE, they may require special clothing or shoes.
• The bus number and the driver’s name if your student rides the bus
• Request the windshield number for child pick-up at the beginning of the school year. This is a really big deal and of utmost importance. Thankfully, just anyone cannot get those windshield signs! There will undoubtedly be times when you may need to pick the grandchildren up from school. School officials will not be able to release your grandchildren to you without proper identification and the required documents (those windshield number signs).

Do you have some good tips to share for helping your grandchildren have a good school year? I read all of the comments. Leave a comment below.

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Thank you for sharing!